No Going Back on IPPIS, FG Tells ASUU – TheNigerialawyer

•Says union can’t dictate mode of salary payment

The rift between the federal government and the Academic Staff
Union of Universities (ASUU) deepened yesterday as the federal
government dismissed the union’s concern about putting lecturers on
the centralised salary payment platform.

Reacting to the union’s objection to President Muhammadu
Buhari’s directive that federal government workers not on the
Integrated Personnel and Payroll Information System (IPPIS) would
not be paid salaries, the Accountant-General of the Federation
(AGF), Mr. Ahmed Idris, fired back, saying that the union is not in
a position to dictate to the federal government on how its members
should be paid their salaries.

ASUU had summoned an emergency National Executive Council
meeting, where it was agreed that the leadership of the union at
chapter level should begin mobilisation of members for an action
against the government over the implementation of IPPIS.

The academic community had all along expressed their
reservations on joining the scheme, citing the autonomy enjoyed by
universities as well as the peculiarities associated with the
academic environment.

But the federal government had directed that any worker not on
the IPPIS would no longer receive salary with effect from
October.

ASUU had insisted that it was not against accountability but
would resist attempt by the government to violate existing laws and
autonomy of the university.

The union also claimed to have offered to help the federal
government design the appropriate template that would factor in the
peculiarities of university lecturers in the IPPIS, a suggestion
the government has not accepted.

ASUU alleged that the government’s template would enslave
intellectuals as it did not make provisions for payment of arrears
of promotion, study leave allowance, responsibility allowance,
among others.

ASUU also threatened to commence legal action against the
federal government over the latter’s move to compel the enrollment
of its members on the IPPIS platform.
However, the AGF yesterday accused the union of trying to denigrate
the IPPIS, which according to him, has been widely celebrated.

He said: “That notwithstanding, there is nowhere employees
dictate to their employers as to how he or she should be paid as
being dictated by ASUU.”
Idris said the policy had enabled government to save over N273
billion from personnel cost between 2017 and 2018.

In a statement by the AGF, he blamed ASUU for the
“misinformation being circulated by the union to justify their
opposition to enrolling on IPPIS, a policy of government for which
the president directed that all MDAs drawing their salary from
Consolidated Revenue Funds (CRF) should join by the end of October
2019.”

He wondered why ASUU would jettison a policy aimed at saving
cost and wastages in the personnel cost of government.

He noted that before now, several meetings had been held with
the leadership of universities comprising vice chancellors,
registrars, bursars, National University Commission (NUC) and the
four unions, including NASU, NAAT, SSANU, and ASUU, where the
workings of IPPIS system had been explained and demonstrated as to
accommodate all government approved peculiarities of tertiary
institutions such as retirement age, sabbatical, visiting and other
peculiarities.

Idris said during the engagements with the unions, the federal
government had pegged the retirement age of professors and readers
at 70 years while others in the universities had 65 years.

He said: “For polytechnics and colleges of education retirement
age is 65 years as is the case in all research institutions.
“Visiting lecturers are entitled to 50 per cent of their salary in
the visiting institutions but only limited to one institution as
approved by NUC, NBTE and NCCE their regulatory body.

“For sabbatical, 100 per cent of their salary in the institution
where the sabbatical is taking place in addition to the full salary
being paid in their host institution.”
According to him, “Sabbatical leave salary is for a maximum period
of one year only but applicable every seventh year and as it is the
standard practice but subject to approval.

“Other allowances as duly agreed through collective bargaining
between their unions and government as approved and formalised by
Salary, Income and Wages Commission (SIWC) will be paid to the last
kobo, inclusive of leave allowances.

“The accommodation of their peculiarities was fully demonstrated
on our payroll slide to confirm how they will be treated
accordingly in the presence of the university stakeholders and all
their four unions.”

Notwithstanding, Idris expressed disappointment that “after the
practical demonstration, it was only ASUU through their national
leadership which questioned the legality of IPPIS and federal
government to pay salary directly to their members in the face of
their autonomy.”

He said despite the practical demonstration, ASUU had continued
to mislead its members and the public for any other reason best
known to them alone.

“The university community, based on their level of knowledge,
experience, academic and research, one would have expected them to
be in the forefront of championing any policy that is geared
towards accountability and transparency in government expenditure,”
he said.

He described ASUU’s alleged opposition to IPPIS as an open
endorsement of corruption in the university system, as the IPPIS
platform will not allow employment of workers at will without
compliance with due process on employment.

“To meet the deadline of government, the process of enrolment is
ongoing; we therefore, urge all university staff to ensure they
enroll on to the IPPIS platform.

“It is pertinent to note that other unions in the universities
have complied and the campaign of calumny against Office of the
Accountant General of the Federation by ASUU is uncalled for and
should be ignored,” he said.