STRIKE AGAIN: College Lectures On Strike

The Colleges of Education Academic Staff Union (COEASU) has embarked on an indefinite strike in order to "salvage the institutions from total collapse.

" The strike was called on Monday, leading to the suspension of academic activities at the Federal Colleges of education nationwide.

The lecturers are concerned over the
Federal Government's Integrated
Personnel Payment System (IPPS) as well
as on the decaying infrastructure in the
colleges. The strike came soon after
university lecturers ended a long-drawn industrial action that lasted nearly six
months.

An official of COAESU, who does not
want to be named because he was not
authorised to speak, said the union went on
strike because it appeared this was the "only language that the Federal Government understands."

"Our colleges are rotting away; no befitting
libraries, hostels, lecture halls and other
structures. The books in our libraries today
are outdated," he said. The official said
colleges of education needed adequate
funds for transformation to enable them provide the expected services to the nation.

"Another vital issue which COEASU wants
government to address is the implementation of migration on its junior staff to the IPPS system…. COEASU wants government to stop the implementation of IPPS on the colleges of education because it will disrupt its progress," he said.

He said "colleges of education as teacher-
training institutions have unique features
different from that of universities. We have
teacher training and teaching practice
programmes which are basic instruments for producing qualitative teachers but government is not allocating funds for these
programmes.

" The official added that colleges of
education are sponsoring their products for
such programmes out of their salary
allocations, and that if the IPPS was
implemented these programmes would
automatically be wiped out from the system.