From Adanna Nnamani, Abuja
The Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities (SSANU), North West zone, has urged the Kano State Government to promptly settle the outstanding entitlements of its members, lamenting the severe hardship faced by the affected individuals, following the current nation’s economic challenges.
The association said the state government owed members in two state-owned universities various entitlements, including promotion arrears, hazard arrears, earned allowance arrears, and the 2018 consequential adjustment on minimum wage arrears.
The union identified Aliko Dangote University of Science and Technology (ADUSTECH) and Yusuf Maitama Sule University (YUMSUK) as the institutions whose staff entitlements have not been settled by the Kano State Government.
In a joint statement after its sixth regular executive council meeting at the Federal University Birnin Kebbi, by the National Vice President and the zonal acting Secretary, SSANU expressed surprise that the state government was yet to pay members at ADUSTECH, Wudil, their 2021 and 2022 promotions arrears, hazard arrears, earned allowance arrears, and consequential adjustment on minimum wage arrears. “Even the palliative paid to civil servants in Kano State was not given to our members in the two state owned universities.”
While describing the action of the government as absurd, the North West zone of SSANU, said: “Our understanding and belief in the Kano State administration’s priority to education is put to check by the inability of the government to settle our members’ entitlements, as well as the absence of governing council for more than a year in the two state owned universities.”
The statement also highlighted the deplorable neglect faced by the employees of the two universities, and urged the state government to promptly reconstitute the governing councils of both institutions. The union stressed the urgent need for the government to settle all outstanding salaries and allowances owed to the workers without any further delay.