ASUU Dares FG On IPPIS’ Enrolment

BY EDMOND ODOK, ABUJA – The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) is set for another round of open confrontation with the Federal Government over the planned enrolment of University lecturers into the Integrated Personnel Payroll and Information System (IPPIS).

The Union has therefore warned its members against turning up for the registration as recently announced by the government.

ASUU National President, Professor Biodun Ogunyemi, insisted that no lecturer will enrol into the payroll system as the Union is proposing an alternative payroll system for lecturers.

Prof Ogunyemi explained that the alternative platform will be comparable to IPPIS being proposed by Federal Government.

He said in Abuja on Thursday that university lecturers would have a follow-up meeting with the leadership of Senate to discuss the option they are proposing to the government.

According to him, the Senate leadership had pleaded with the union to maintain “status quo”, following threat of a strike in October, adding that government was also expected to do the same.

The ASUU President said: “We have not changed our position. Our discussion with the National Assembly, particularly the Senate, is that we should come up with an alternative that will be juxtaposed with what government is presenting.

“As we have said, our alternative is in the works. We are working on the alternative that we proposed and we hope to have a follow-up meeting with the leadership of the Senate.”

Ogunyemi further said; “They have told us that the status quo should remain and we expect the ministry or the Accountant-General’s Office to also keep to that position.

“If they are saying they want to stop our people’s salary, we will process it and respond appropriately.”

On what ASUU will do to its members who show up for enrolment on Monday, the Union leader said: “We are processing it, as I said, and we will respond appropriately.

“We have our own mechanism for handling that. It is not for the media.”

On Wednesday, November 20, the Federal Government had announced its plans to commence lecturers’ enrolment into the IPPIS next week.

An advertorial placed in some national newspapers by Accountant General of the Federation (AGF) Ahmed Idris, indicate that the University teachers will be captured on the payroll system in an exercise holding between November 25 and December 7, 2019. – With agency reports