Gombe State Ministry of Higher Education says it has reached an agreement with members of the state university chapter of the Academic Staff Union of Universities, ASUU, to begin the payment of N400 million arrears of salary and allowances owed the lecturers from 2009 to 2013 by January next year.
Permanent Secretary in the ministry, Dr Daniel Musa Mohammed, made this known to journalists while reacting to an ultimatum issued by state university ASUU members last week over their readiness to commence strike action if their demands are not met.
Musa said the state government has reached an agreement with the university to commence the clearance of all the accumulated arrears by the beginning of next year.
According to him, the agreement was reached in a meeting between Governor Ibrahim Hassan Dankwambo with the university council where it was resolved that, the university shelve their proposed strike action and allow the government work towards tackling the issue.
He explained that government had been consistent in allocating over N160 million to the university on a monthly bases and have also been working towards clearing all accumulated allowances and entitlements within the first quarter of 2015, but that such efforts were not fruitful due to the sudden economic meltdown.
He said: “ The price of crude oil when the agreement was reached with ASSU was $140 and now it is hovering around $38, so you can see the drop, and it is not as if it happened gradually, it was a sudden drop, and you can imagine what the government is passing through under such economic constraints, it became very difficult for the government to pay those arrears.” He stated.
Mohammed explained further that in other to clear such accumulated allowances, government has resolved to include it in the 2016 budget with a view to commence the payments on monthly basis along with workers monthly salaries.
Gombe State University ASSU had last week warned that it will go on strike if the state government refuse to pay the balance of arrears owed them between 2009-2013 including, Excess Workload, Responsibility Allowances, Study Grants termed Earned Academic Allowances, EAA, to deserving academics, as provided in the 2009 agreement following the dispatch of the bailout funds to states sometimes in August or September this year.
Permanent Secretary in the ministry, Dr Daniel Musa Mohammed, made this known to journalists while reacting to an ultimatum issued by state university ASUU members last week over their readiness to commence strike action if their demands are not met.
Musa said the state government has reached an agreement with the university to commence the clearance of all the accumulated arrears by the beginning of next year.
According to him, the agreement was reached in a meeting between Governor Ibrahim Hassan Dankwambo with the university council where it was resolved that, the university shelve their proposed strike action and allow the government work towards tackling the issue.
He explained that government had been consistent in allocating over N160 million to the university on a monthly bases and have also been working towards clearing all accumulated allowances and entitlements within the first quarter of 2015, but that such efforts were not fruitful due to the sudden economic meltdown.
He said: “ The price of crude oil when the agreement was reached with ASSU was $140 and now it is hovering around $38, so you can see the drop, and it is not as if it happened gradually, it was a sudden drop, and you can imagine what the government is passing through under such economic constraints, it became very difficult for the government to pay those arrears.” He stated.
Mohammed explained further that in other to clear such accumulated allowances, government has resolved to include it in the 2016 budget with a view to commence the payments on monthly basis along with workers monthly salaries.
Gombe State University ASSU had last week warned that it will go on strike if the state government refuse to pay the balance of arrears owed them between 2009-2013 including, Excess Workload, Responsibility Allowances, Study Grants termed Earned Academic Allowances, EAA, to deserving academics, as provided in the 2009 agreement following the dispatch of the bailout funds to states sometimes in August or September this year.
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