The Academic Staff Union of Polytechnics (ASUP) has called for the suspension of the new Scheme of Service in Nigeria Polytechnics which took effect from June 7, 2024.
The Auchi Polytechnic chapter of the union called for the suspension at an emergency congress in Auchi on Friday.
The lecturers said the new scheme represents a “deadend” to the growth and development of the polytechnic education as well as career progression of lecturers in the polytechnic system.
In his address during the meeting, the chapter chairman, Comrade Bamidele Osamudiamen noted that the gains recorded by the sector in recent times will be eroded by the new scheme.
He said that the new scheme of service will further reinforce the HND-BSc dichotomy.
Osamudiamen also condemned the document for promoting what he described as discriminatory practices favouring university degree holders over HND holders in the country.
According to him, “The unfair career progression guide in the sector particularly as it affects the teaching and non-teaching staff cadres is a recipe for crises as such is not reflective of the remuneration accruing to the cadres.
“The contentious document curiously, unjustifiably and unacceptably elongates the career progression steps of the Lecturer cadre from a 7 step to a 9 step career development cadre and at the same time added an extra year for promotion to the final two levels.
“This implies that anyone on the lecturer cadre will now endure a minimum of 26 years from the base to the highest level.
“This is not acceptable particularly in view of the fact that this deviates from the norm in other subsectors and that the retirement age in the sector remains unchanged.
“We are prepared for indiustrial action of government fails to take the necessary step to revert this scheme abs we are battle prepare for it.
“Starting from Monday, we will Kickstart the process with a protest on the need scheme while this will be followed up with strike.”
In his submission, the Rector of the Polytechnic, Salisu Umar backed the lecturers protest of the new scheme and commended the national body of polytechnic lecturers on their stand on the issue.
The record who noted that the new scheme will kill polytechnic education in the country, urged for it to be thrown away.
“My challenge in all of this is the way the polytechnic is been downgraded and relegated to the background.
“For instance, it takes a maximum of 18 years for a university lecturer to become a professor, but in the polytechnic, it takes a minimum of 18 years to become a chief lecturer.
“The polytechnic lecturers are been made to play third fiddle, nor even second fiddle.
“I want to say that the new scheme of service is faulty and fraught with lots of irregularities and should be thrown away,” he stated.
“The body of polytechnic rectors are no in tune with the provisions of the new scheme.
We had thought the scheme was a good one until we took a critical look at the provisions,” he noted.
He however urged them to remain peaceful with the way to go about protestinf for the new scheme of service.
Following critical review of the document by the NEC of the Union, and in pursuit of our Union’s commitment to the advancement of the interest of members and the Polytechnics in Nigeria.
The document’s approval route which gave rise to the significant and contentious alterations is legally questionable as the role of The Office of The Head of Civil Service of The Federation (OHCSoF) as an approving authority is challengeable.
In the new scheme of service which took effect from June 7, 2024, approved for Nigerian Polytechnics, holders of Higher National Diploma (HND) with good grades can now be appointed as Academic Staff (Graduate Assistants) like their degree counterparts.
The contentious document curiously, unjustifiably and unacceptably elongates the career progression steps of the Lecturer cadre from a 7 step to a 9 step career development cadre and at the same time added an extra year for promotion to the final two levels.
This implies that anyone on the lecturer cadre will now endure a minimum of 26 tortuous years from the base to the highest level. This is not acceptable particularly in view of the fact that this deviates from the norm in other subsectors and that the retirement age in the sector remains unchanged.
=“The unfair career progression guide in the sector particularly as it affects the teaching and non-teaching staff cadres is a recipe for crises as such is not reflective of the remuneration accruing to the cadres.
Under the new schemes, the Instructor Cadre, which represented segregation against HND holders in the past, has been abolished.
The new service scheme maintains the Pharmacy Technology Cadre for HND graduate of the discipline.
=Kpanja also described the new scheme of service as controversial, saying that the status of Nigerian Polytechnics was again brought to question by the document.
=He also condemned the document for promoting what he described as discriminatory practices favouring university degree holders over Higher National Diploma (HND) holders in the country.
In his submission, the Rector of the Polytechnic, Salisu Umar backed the lecturers protest of the new scheme and commended the national body of the letmctiers on their stand on the issue.
The record who noted that the new shxnee will kill polytechnic education in the country, urged for it to be thrown away.
“My challenge in all of this is the way the Polytechnic is been downgraded and relegated to the background.
“For instance, it takes a maximum of 18 years for a university lecturer to become a professor, but in the polytechnic, it takes a minimum of 18 years to become a chief lecturer.
“The polytechnic lecturers are been made to play third fiddle, nor even second fiddle.
“I want to say that the new scheme of service is faulty and fraught with lots of irregularities and should be thrown away.
The body of polytechnic rectors are no in tune with the provisions of the new scheme,” he noted.
He however urged them to remain peaceful with the way to go about protestinf for the new scheme of service.
