After weeks of strike action by workers’ unions over unpaid salary, academic activities are expected to resume today (Monday) at the Abia State Polytechnic, Aba.
Though information on the outcome of the meeting between several unions in the polytechnic and the Acting Rector, Prof. Uche Ikonne were sketchy as at the time of filing this report, a member of the local chapter of the Academic Staff Union of Polytechnics who spoke on the condition of anonymity said they decided to suspend the strike action in the interest of their students who were about writing their second semester exams as well as to give the acting rector who just assumed office a chance to address the issues which led to the strike.
According to him, “after several hours and days of meetings and negotiations, they have been able to pay us one month salary (June), they have equally cleared backlog of arrears till May 2014 and because it was an inherited problem, all the workers’ unions have decided to give the Acting Rector the chance to see how he can address these issues.”
Neither the Rector nor Public Relations Officer of the Polytechnic, Mr. Anyalewechi Chingoziri could be reached for comments, but our correspondent gathered that the lecturers and students would use the opening week to prepare for the second semester examinations.
Recall that the Abia state Polytechnic, Aba has been enmeshed in incessant strike actions by the various workers’ union over arrears of salaries which may have led to the sacking of the former Rector, Elder Allwell Onukaogu who was replaced by Prof, Uche Ikonne.
