College of Education union urges FG to implement reached agreement

The Colleges of Education Academic Staff Union (C O E A S U) has called on the federal government to implement the FGN-COEASU 2010 agreement.

The union made this call in a communiqué jointly signed by its President Nuhu Ogirima and General Secretary Taiwo A. Olayanju at the end of its Expanded National Executive Council (ENEC) meeting held at the Akwa Ibom State College of Education.

The union said that while the renegotiation process of other tertiary institutions progressed steadily, the renegotiation of the FGN-COEASU 2010 Agreement “remains provocatively discouraging, and the process has been stalled again,” imploring the government to urgently resume the process without further delay in the interest of industrial harmony.

It also called for the implementation of CONPCASS and 65years retirement age for college of education teachers.

“Council acknowledged the implementation of the 65years retirement age and CONPCASS salary structure by most state governments. However, while charging those paying fractions of the salary structure to desist by paying in full, Council specifically considers as exploitative, and unacceptable, the non-payment of salary to, and the non-implementation of CONPCASS salary structure for staff of the College of Education, Arochukwu, by the Abia State government.”

The union also decried what it termed “the denial of right to promotion and the state of infrastructure in Abia College of Education” and urged the state government to urgently address the issue.

“We also decried the nonapproval of a pension scheme for the COE, Akwanga, by the Nasarawa State government. Council views this as insensitivity to the rights and welfare of people who give their all for the training of other citizens for the good of the nation. Against this background, Council calls on the Nasarawa state government to engage the staff towards securing a viable pension scheme that can address their welfare after service/on retirement.”