“Before today, we've been holding a peaceful protest inside the campus but never disrupted any academic activity and we think that is why they've been taking us for granted. The management just finished conducting the most fraudulent examination in the history of the institution, setting questions from outside the school; it has never happened before in this school."
Non-Academic Staff Union (NASU) of the Lagos State Polytechnic, Ikorodu, on Wednesday embarked on a peaceful protest over salary arrears and de-migration of their salary structure, amongst other things.
The protesting members successfully brought to hold all academic and administrative activities on the institution’s campus, with the entrance gates of the institution locked.
The protest has led to a lockdown of vehicular movement around the school. Road users who travel the Ikorodu-Shagamu express road were also affected.
Speaking to SaharaReporters, Gbenga Salami, spokesperson of the union, recalled that NASU had been on an indefinite industrial action for about three months but had not received the attention of the school’s management and the government.
He said: “We've been considerate enough. This union has been on strike for about three months now and yet nothing has been done to address issues raised.
“Before today, we've been holding a peaceful protest inside the campus but never disrupted any academic activity and we think that is why they've been taking us for granted. The management just finished conducting the most fraudulent examination in the history of the institution, setting questions from outside the school; it has never happened before in this school.”
Salami expressed lack of confidence in the management of the institution, stating that staff are being paid meagre salaries as low as N1,000 as salary.
He said: “The members of the union are being owed salaries and some who were paid around January received ridiculous amount of N1,000, N1,500 and so on."
He also lamented that the state government had failed to listen to their demands and proffer a solution to the problem at hand.
He vowed that the institution would be on lockdown until both the state government and school management gave heed to the demands of the union.
"We've made our demands clear, one of which is the change in management of the institution. But it seems the government is not listening, so this gate will remain locked until the government and management are ready to address the issues we raised."
NASU Ikorodu chapter has been on strike for about three months over the refusal of the management to increase the pay of its members, as well as their demand for the reversal of an alleged de-migration of their salary structure by the institution’s management, among others.
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