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By Gabriel Dike
Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) and Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Polytechnics (SSANIP) has expressed concern over the Federal Government continue establishment of more tertiary institutions without funding the existing ones.
Reacting to the establishment of more universities and polytechnics, the two unions also explained that the establishment of such institutions by the Federal Government could be for political reasons.
ASUU Lagos Zonal Coordinator, Adelaja Odukoya, told Daily Sun that government has not properly funded the existing public universities and it is busy establishing new ones.
He said: “We have been talking about lack of funding for public universities and the same government we have been complaining to for long is busy establishing new universities. Establishing new universities should not be the priority of government but how to fund the existing ones.
“If government cannot fund existing universities, why create more. The ones on ground are poorly funded. Government is trying to make public universities worthless so that the private universities they have interest can develop. How many students do the private universities admit?”
Odukoya said the Federal Government is not bothered about quality of university education, adding, they are only interested in establishing new ones. Nigerian lecturers are the worse paid in the World. We are even below the African average.”
Reacting to the development, SSANIP President, Philip Ogunsipe, said: “Establishment of new polytechnics could be for political reason. Apart from salaries, the Federal Government is not funding the old polytechnics. Visit any public polytechnic in the country, any project you see on ground are funded by TETFund,” he said.
Ogundipe disclosed that for several years, SSANIP has been complaining about poor funding of public polytechnics without any improvement. He said the new tertiary institutions established would be funded by TETFund.
He said all the 11 staff unions in tertiary institutions in the country are demanding same things with funding being the major one.
