The Academic Staff Union of Polytechnics (ASUP) has issued a stern warning to the Federal Government, demanding an immediate end to the persistent delays in the payment of salaries and allowances for polytechnic lecturers or risk a total withdrawal of services.
In a statement signed by ASUP President, Shammah Kpanja, the union lamented that staff in federal tertiary institutions have endured delayed salaries for eight consecutive months, a situation it described as intolerable and detrimental to industrial harmony in the education sector.
“This call is made in the overall interest of the fragile industrial harmony in the tertiary education sector, particularly the polytechnics,” the statement read. “No trade union will continue to watch her members go through these harrowing experiences every month as government continues to undermine its contractual obligations.”
ASUP warned that if the situation does not improve in the coming days, it may instruct members in all affected federal polytechnics to stop work indefinitely. “We will sustain the action until the salaries are paid and may adopt the same pattern at the end of each month going forward,” Kpanja said.
Titled “Habitual Delay in Payment of Salaries Across Federal Polytechnics in Nigeria,” the statement attributed the delays to the ongoing transition from the Integrated Payroll and Personnel Information System (IPPIS) to the Government Integrated Financial Management Information System (GIFMIS), overseen by the Office of the Accountant General of the Federation.
“The new trend of subjecting staff to mental torture through indeterminate delays in releasing already devalued salaries began with the payment platform transition,” ASUP stated. “Despite consistent complaints to the Accountant General’s office, no improvement has been recorded.”
The union condemned what it called the government’s disregard for academic workers, arguing that the prolonged delay—now stretching eight months—exposes the low value placed on education and its workforce.
“This is not just mismanagement; it is deliberate torture. Only a government that undervalues education will treat its academic staff this way,” the union said, noting that both payment platforms are managed by the same office, and the transition should have been seamless.
ASUP also decried the worsening economic hardship facing lecturers, saying many are now forced to borrow heavily each month to survive. “Our members have become beggars in a collapsing economy. Salaries are no longer sustenance—they only serve to repay debts,” the union added.
It further criticised political leaders for indulging in “mindless opulence and political scheming” while academic staff wallow in poverty. “This is symptomatic of a nation in deep decay,” ASUP said.
The union concluded by demanding the immediate release of June 2025 salaries and an end to what it described as a disturbing pattern of delayed payments.
