By DOUGLAS OKORO

A one-week warning strike by the Colleges of Education Academic Staff Union (COEASU), the Ebonyi College of Education, Ikwo chapter, over unpaid benefits has paralysed academic activities at the institution.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the action, which commenced Monday, halted lectures, examinations, and other academic programmes.

The development is contained in a statement signed by the chapter Chairman of COEASU, Dr Ama Nnachi, and made available to newsmen on Tuesday in Abakaliki.

Nnachi explained that the industrial action followed the expiration of the two different ultimatums, including the 14-day and seven-day ultimatums, earlier issued to the State Government and institution’s management over what the union described as “years of neglect and poor conditions of service”.

“We are on strike because the 2024 salary structure has not been implemented. This is 2026 and nothing has been done,” Nnachi stated.

He further disclosed that the union was demanding the payment of a living wage and settlement of pensions and gratuities owed to retired staff members.

According to him, lecturers salaries are still paid under an “outdated structure tied to the ₦18,000 minimum wage introduced over a decade ago.

“As we speak, some staff, who have worked for 20 years to 22 years, earn less than ₦30,000 in today’s Nigeria.

“With a litre of fuel selling above ₦1,500, how do they survive?” Nnachi asked.

He added that the situation had become life-threatening for many members of staff of the institution.

“Our members are dying almost on a daily basis because of hardship.

“This is no longer just about salaries, it is about survival,” the union leader stated.

The group further decried the non-payment of pensions and gratuities, describing the fate of retired staff as “heartbreaking”.

“You work for 35 years and go home with nothing: no pension, no gratuity. It is not supposed to be so,” Nnachi added.

He warned that failure to address the issues after the warning strike would trigger off an indefinite industrial action.

Meanwhile, a lecturer, who spoke to NAN on the condition of anonymity, reinforced the union’s concerns, saying that the government had failed in its most basic responsibility.

“All the infrastructure in the institution are funded by external interventions.

“The only duty of the government is to pay salaries, and that is not being done,” the lecturer said.

He contended that the situation also exposed the plight of the institution’s academic retirees, who complained that they had been abandoned after years of service.

A retiree, Mr Celestine Oke, said that after retiring from service many years ago, he had yet to receive his pension or gratuity.

“I retired in 2022, and until today, I have not received my pension nor gratuity; I survive from hand to mouth,” Okey said.

Another retiree, Samuel Uwalaka, described the situation as unbearable.

“We are suffering. Our colleagues elsewhere have been paid, but we have been left behind. Government should come to our rescue,” Uwalaka said.

Reacting to the strike, the provost of the college, Prof. Benedict Mbam, confirmed that the union was demanding the implementation of the 2024 salary structure approved by the Salaries and Wages Commission.

“They are pressing for the implementation of the 2024 salary structure and we have communicated this to the State Government.

“As soon as we hear from the governor, I believe the matter will be addressed.

The government is responsible for their salaries,” Mbam said.

He expressed optimism that the impasse would soon be resolved once the State Government responded.

He dismissed claims that students were abandoned on campus, saying that “management had directed them to proceed on a one-week Easter break.

“Students were asked to go on Easter break. Those still around are only confused due to the situation,” he said.

NAN reports that the strike has disrupted the institution’s academic schedule, particularly for students, who were supposed to sit for examinations before the Easter break. (NAN)