ASUU To Meet NASS Leaders In Fight Against Payroll System Controversy

...IPPIS October deadline: No pay, no work, union tells FG

The Academic Staff Union of Universities will on Monday (today) meet with the leadership of the National Assembly as part of its battle against the controversial Integrated Payroll and Personnel Information System.

A source in the nation’s parliament confided in one of our correspondents that the meeting would be held behind closed doors today (Monday).

He said , “ It has been confirmed that the ASUU leadership will meet the leadership of the National Assembly on Monday.

The meeting will centre on the ongoing face - off between ASUU and the Federal Government over the IPPIS saga. ”

President Muhammadu Buhari, had during the 2020 budget presentation at the National Assembly on October 8, ordered that all public sector workers must register for the IPPIS to save cost and fight corruption by blocking leakages in the Federal Government’ s salary payment structure.

But ASUU had last week opposed the President’ s directive, saying the IPPIS negated the law on university autonomy.

The Accountant-General of the Federation , Alhaji Ahmed Idris , who faulted ASUU , said the union ’s position was an open endorsement of corruption.

Also, the Minister of Finance , Budget and National Planning, Mrs Zainab Ahmed, had on Thursday said no government agency must resist the payment system.

The Special Adviser to the Senate President on Media and Publicity, Ola Awoniyi, on Sunday confirmed ASUU’ s meeting with the National Assembly leadership.

He said the meeting would hold at 11am in his principal ’s conference room.

Awoniyi in a WhatsApp message to one of our correspondents, wrote, “ The Academic Staff Union of Universities will meet His Excellency, the Senate President, on Monday at Meeting Room 301 by 11am. ”

When contacted, the ASUU National President, Prof. Biodun Ogunyemi , also confirmed the meeting , but declined to provide details of demands the union would table before the Senate President.

“ The most important thing is that we are meeting tomorrow ( Monday) . We want to discuss the Nigerian education generally . All issues ( including the IPPIS ) will be touched . 

I think that is enough, ” the ASUU president noted.

No pay , no work, union tells FG

But the South -West branch of the union on Sunday reiterated its opposition to the Federal Government’ s move to enrol university lecturers in the IPPIS.

The ASUU leaders from the South - West during a press conference held at the University of Ibadan, described the IPPIS as “ a one -size - fits-all approach tainted with corrupt tendencies .”

The ASUU position was made known by the Coordinator of the South-West , Prof. Ade Adejumo, who led the Chairman of the University of Ibadan chapter, Prof Deji Omole, and its Investment Secretary, Prof. Ayo Akinwole, to address journalists at the ASUU Secretariat on the UI campus.

Adejumo was asked what would be the reaction of the union to the Federal Government’ s statement that anyone who failed to register for the IPPIS by October 31 would not be paid, he said , “ ASUU ’s position has always remained no pay, no work. ”

Adejumo berated the Accountant- General of the Federation for alleging that ASUU was encouraging corruption by its opposition to the IPPIS.

Source: Punch