FG Withholding Salary Arrears Insensitive, Inconsiderate — SSANU

The Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities (SSANU) has described as insensitive and inconsiderate the Federal Government's refusal to pay members of the union the salary arrears for the four months during which it embarked on a nationwide strike.

SSANU expressed its displeasure in a communique issued at the end of the 42nd Regular National Executive Council (NEC) meeting held at the University of Calabar, Cross River State and signed by its National President, Comrade Mohammed Ibrahim.

Ibrahim had earlier expressed dissatisfaction with the FG on the welfare of non-teaching staff due to the backlog of salaries, noting that the union had not given up on the withheld salary arrears. 

The union in the communique called on the FG to pay the "arrears in one instalment without further delay."

“NEC in session describes the action of FGN on the withheld four Month salary arrears during the nationwide strike embarked on by the Union as insensitive and inconsiderate.

“It would be recalled that SSANU complied with all industrial legal protocol before embarking on strike when the Government reneged on its part of the bargain.

"It becomes totally amusing and distasteful that Government could, in spite of the glaring legal compliance by SSANU on this industrial action, still proceed to withhold the salaries of her members, whereas other institutions of higher learning that did not in any way comply with extant legal procedures before embarking on strike, still receive their salaries till date.

“NEC, therefore, views Government posture and position as unimaginably unfortunate. It, therefore, calls to urgently pay the said arrears in one instalment without further delay.

“In the same vein, NEC earnestly urges the Government to release the three-month withheld third-party deductions to affected Federal Universities. This becomes imperative as the delay is causing serious upsets and breaches to financial organizations in affected Universities,” the communique read in part.