NAAT Declares Nationwide Protest Over Five Months of Withheld Salaries

NAAT Declares Nationwide Protest Over Five Months of Withheld Salaries

The National Association of Academic Technologists (NAAT) announced on Wednesday a nationwide protest due to five months of unpaid salaries and unresolved agreements with the Federal Government.

NAAT plans to picket the Ministry of Finance on November 14, following the government’s failure to act on President Bola Tinubu’s directive to release the withheld salaries.

The protest is set to begin at midnight on November 6, 2024, mobilizing union branches across universities, polytechnics, and colleges of education to advocate for their demands.

Comrade Ibeji Nwokoma, NAAT’s president, announced the protest after a National Executive Council meeting in Abuja, issuing a two-week ultimatum starting October 30, 2024, for the Federal Government to address their grievances.

During a media briefing in Abuja, Nwokoma outlined the union’s longstanding demands, including the payment of five and a half months of withheld salaries and the full implementation of a 2009 agreement that addresses critical issues such as allowances for academic technologists, student training programs, and staff-to-student ratios.

He called on the government to release funds for upgrading university laboratories and to tackle the broader issues of underfunding in public universities.

NAAT had previously set a three-week ultimatum on September 30, 2024, which lapsed without acknowledgment from relevant government agencies, including the Ministries of Education and Labour and Employment.

Expressing frustration over what they deem government “insensitivity,” NAAT highlighted President Tinubu’s recent approval for salary payments, which has not been acted upon by the Finance Ministry.

Within the two-week timeframe, local branches will hold congresses to decide whether to escalate the protest into a full strike. Nwokoma warned that if the government does not respond by November 13, 2024, NAAT will initiate an indefinite strike, potentially disrupting academic calendars and critical research activities across the tertiary education sector.

In his statement, Nwokoma said, “It is unfortunate that despite President Tinubu’s approval to pay the owed salaries, the Minister of Finance’s failure to implement this raises serious questions about the government’s commitment to resolving these issues.”

He emphasized that previous efforts, including letters, protests, and several Memorandums of Understanding with the government, have been ineffective.

Nwokoma concluded by expressing hope that the government would use this opportunity to resolve outstanding issues, thus preventing any disruption to the academic calendar and protecting essential research and teaching activities.