By Ismail Auwal
Kaduna State Governor, Malam Nasiru El-Rufai has vowed to retrieve all salaries paid to the academic staff of Kaduna State Universities (KASU) during the ongoing Academic Staff Union of Universities’ strike.
El-Rufai, who stated this in a media chat monitored by SAHELIAN TIMES, on Wednesday, claimed that the Nigerian constitution makes it clear that striking workers are not entitled to payment of salaries.
“I once ordered that their salaries stopped, but the vice chancellor informed me that classes were still holding, so I allowed it (the payment) to continue. I later received another information that the university academic staff were not working, and I have ordered the State Commissioner of Education to investigate the matter”, he stated.
The Governor, as he once did, also vowed to sack the striking academicians if the probe finds them wanting; “I am only waiting for the report, and when I find out that they are on strike with their other colleagues, I assure you, we will fire them.”
El-Rufai added that the KASU staff had no reason to join the ASUU strike because they have no problem with the state government.
“I have told them on several occasions that KASU and ASUU have no problem with the Kaduna State Government, so why will they join the strike?”, he queried.
It could be recalled that the university lecturers have shut down public institutions since February 14 over the inability of the Federal Government to implement the agreements it entered with them in 2009, as well as the refusal of the current administration to exempt lecturers from the Integrated Payroll and Personnel Information System (IPPIS).
