Foreign news

ASUP Wants Education Ministry To Address Lingering Issues Affecting Sector To Avert Strike

Published

4 years ago

October 13, 2020

The Academic Staff Union of Polytechnics (ASUP) has pleaded with the Minister of Education to intervene in some of the lingering crisis currently threatening the sector in order to avert strike actions.

Mr. Anderson Ibe, President of the association made the plea when he led a delegation on a working visit to the Ministry of Education in Abuja on Tuesday.

Ibe, who listed 10-point items threatening the harmony of the sector, said the timely intervention of the minister would save the sector from avoidable strike actions.

While recounting the pains the sector had gone through, Ibe called on to the leadership of the ministry to address the content of the needs assessment study of polytechnics since 2014.

According to him, with the gradual reopening, it is pertinent we bring forth these issues to be addressed to forestall chaos in the sector.

“We the leadership of ASUP appeals that the ministry urgently intervenes in some lingering issues in the sector which is currently threatening the sector.

“No single polytechnic has benefited from funds meant to address the content of the needs assessment exercise. The intent will be defeated if the polytechnics do not get the implementation.

“President Muhammadu Buhari signed the minimum wage effect from April 2019 and up till now, polytechnics in Nigeria are owed 10 months despite different levels of interventions from the Office of the Accountant General of the Federation and the rest.

“Only two states have the minimum wage bill implemented- Kano and Jigawa. No implementation has been made in other states. We also have states where members were owed 21 months and some not even paid during the lockdown.

Ibe also listed another grey area of attention to include non-adherence to the provisions of the polytechnics Act as amended in 2019 as seen in the non-reconstitution of the governing council as well as the need to ensure that credible persons are appointed into the council.

He pleaded with the ministry to ensure that only persons who have a passion for education should be appointed to be in the governing council of polytechnics.

Others are continued victimization of union officials as seen in IMT Enugu, Federal Polytechnics Mubi and Rufus Giwa Polytechnics, Owo as well as fresh plans to victimize union officials at the Federal Polytechnics, Bida.

“Five officials of our union have been dismissed and we are also receiving signs that three other staff of the Federal Polytechnics Bida is bid down for dismissal. Continue victimization is not in the best interest of our union,” he said.

Responding, the Minister of State for Education, Mr. Chukuemeka Nwajuiba promised to look at the areas identified by the union with the hope of giving adequate attention to within a week.

“We are here to do what is right and in doing what is right we will be guided by the extant laws and rules.

” We will not want to reply verbally because a lot of them bother on the issue of laws and rules. We want to ensure that our schools are safe which is key in understanding how we want to approach all our discussions.

” The primary purpose of existence is the development of manpower for our country. So why that is the focus, we will take note of the 10 items.”

Nwajuiba urged the union not to lose focus but encouraged them to continue to contribute their quota to the development of Polytechnic education in the country.

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Foreign news

French Envoy Seeks Collaboration With NAN To Boost Seamless Relationship

Published

1 hour ago

February 5, 2025

The Gleamer

The new French envoy to Nigeria, Marc Fonbaustier, on Wednesday called for collaboration with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) toward strengthening the mutually beneficial relationship between the two countries.

Fonbaustier, who is the French ambassador to Nigeria and the ECOWAS, made the call when he paid a courtesy visit to Malam Ali Muhammad Ali, NAN’s Managing Director, in Abuja.
The ambassador said that his purpose of visiting was to pay tribute to the MD, and to seek collaboration in three areas with a view to promoting stronger, seamless and fruitful partnership between both countries.

He added that Nigeria and its people were hospitable, especially to the foreigners and ambassadors alike.

He added that Nigeria was a country with so much energy, strength, stamina and so many talents.

In Nigeria, with the population of this size, it is inevitable that the elites of the country are very outstanding, “and there may be a Franco/Nigeria moments now”, he jokes.

According to him, France and Nigeria can collaborate more and learn from each other.
“I could feel it particularly during the state visit of President Bola Tinubu which took place in November 2024.

“I was there and I could see the intensity, the strength and the scope of the partnership, and I am here to scale up that partnership in all sectors.

“I am coming here for three reasons, first, to pay a tribute to the NAN MD and his team for the quality of this agency. We can testify that the contents that you publish are very factual, and also very well set up and structured.

“You do fact checking and you really do try to provide the community with quality information. I think, as a French ambassador, I can recognise that as part of a living democracy,” he said.

The French ambassador said the second reason for the visit was to intimate the NAN MD of France’s eagerness to go on partnership with NAN saying he hoped for assurance of a seamless, fluid and easy relationship.

He said that his third reason stemmed from his observation that NAN recently signed some partnership framework agreements with Egypt and China, saying “it may be time to think of balancing this partnership with others”.

“Especially with French, and to talk with Agence France-Presse (AFP) to see if there’s ground for a closer relationship between NAN and AFP.

“Which is also a recognised agency like yours, and I bet you the sky will be the limit to the collaboration, ’’he said.

Responding, the NAN MD informed the envoy that the agency was African’s biggest news content provider on account of its size.

Ali gave the envoy a little details of the agency’s operation and its outreach, saying “as our continent’s biggest news content provider, we have offices nationwide and in selected African countries.

“We have offices in countries such as South Africa, Cote d’ivoire, Addis Ababa, and then we have offices also beyond the shores of Africa. We have in New York and we are the only resident wire service in the United Nations.

“At a time in the past, the agency had 11 foreign offices, including Moscow, and presently, we are trying to re-open some of our shut offices, especially in London.
“We value partnership and understanding that we have with similar news organisation such as Reuters and, incidentally, we have a long standing relationship with AFP which you just raised.
“I know for years we have exchange of news between NAN and AFP but it’s a cooperation that we will like to strengthen and with your greater involvement,’’ he said.

The MD commended the ambassador for reaching out and engaging with some Nigerians communities to douse the tension of the allegation made by the Nigeriens.

He also lauded the envoy’s leadership and visibility to Nigeria and the ECOWAS, “which has helped to douse the perception and misconceptions about France, especially in the Sahel”.
“I think you have helped to reverse some of this perceptions. I thank you for the kind words that you said about the agency and about our management.

“We also see partnership as an important tool in checking the spread of fake news.
“We’ve seen instances where fake news has done great deal of damage, and with the coming of social media it has done even greater damage.

“Our country is facing a lot of challenges, one of which is the increasing insecurity, and the social media has been used by those who do not want to see our country to prosper,” Ali said.
He further said that NAN was a credible news agency that always fact check to correct the wrong narratives by those who are in the business of causing troubles.

He also told the envoy that the agency has its content in the Nigerian indigenous languages, starting with Hausa and it would proceed to Yoruba and Igbo languages later, “then later in future to French.

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