Colleges of Education Academic Staff Union (COEASU) has joined the indefinite warning strike called by the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC).
The union cited failure of the Federal Government to implement the new minimum wage as reason for embarking on the industrial action.
National President of COEASU, Comrade Nuhu Ogirima, in a statement in Abuja on Wednesday, decried the federal governmentโs insensitivity to Nigerian workersโ welfare and the pathetic plight of colleges of education.
He explained that the union joined the strike because it had become evident that both the federal and state governments were not ready to solve the challenges faced by colleges of education in the country.
Ogirima said: โWhile the union strives to stimulate her members towards re-dedicating themselves to the selfless service of humanity, notwithstanding the conditions of the work-place and lingering work related challenges, it has become evident that dialogue and diplomacy are alien to governmentโs lexicon of labour engagement, if any, for neither the Federal nor State Governments is ready to meaningfully solve the myriad of challenges besetting the COEs.
โThe Union is quite perturbed because of the grave implication of the foregoing evident neglect on the real training and development practices relating to basic education advancements in the country, since the colleges of education system provide the manpower needs for the foundation level of education, suffices to state that a good foundation is the basis of a sound edifice.โThe refusal of the respective governments and various authorities to expeditiously address the issues would be sure recipe for the union to invoke measures that would impede the smooth running of the entire colleges of education system. Ultimately, the peaceful and congenial atmosphere for which the colleges of education have been known would be difficult to guarantee.โ
He noted that while the organised labour had cause to support the anti-corruption fight of the present administration, government has refused to reciprocate the patriotic understanding by choosing to renege on the much-touted minimum wage review.
According to him, as an affiliate of NLC, COEASU had no choice besides the call for strike by the leadership of the labour union, adding that it is expedient to also invoke their rights โto take further action against the crass insensitivity of government, at both State and Federal levels, to the plight of the Colleges of Education.โ
