By Mabinty M. Kamara
The Principal of the Milton Margai College of Education and Technology (MMCET) has denounced a strike notice issued by the Senior Staff Association of the college, describing it as illegal.
Dr Philip John Kanu said the aggrieved lecturers failed to follow the due process in announcing the strike action, rendering it “unlawful”.
He went on: “As far as I am concerned, that notice is illegal because the writers did not follow the right procedure of the institution, which is to have engaged the administration on the said issue before convening a membership meeting that should have two-thirds of members present,” he told Politico.
“They have rights to embark on a strike action if they follow the right procedure,” he added.
The Senior Staff Association of MMCET had issued the notice dated 25 October, a copy of which appeared on social media last week. Among other concerns, the lecturers were unhappy with the failure of payment of a 25% allowance by the college administration for the last three months, according to the notice.
They claimed that an agreement between the Ministry of Tertiary and Higher Education and MMCET committed the latter to pay the 25% of staff allowances.
“As at now, staff are yet to receive three (3) months of the said allowance,” part of the notice reads.
Dr. Kanu confirmed the existence of an agreement between the Ministry and MMCET requiring the latter to pay part of the lecturers’ allowances, but he said it wasn’t 25 percent. He explained that the allowances varied depending on the hierarchy of the individual, noting that they ranged from four percent to 14 percent.
“They are claiming that we have to pay them 25% [but] it is not 25%. We never have to pay them 25%. The Accountant General agreed to pay the net salaries and other allowances, but we also have other allowances that we the administration have to pay from the subventions and the tuition fees,” he stated.
Kanu said the College was dealing with some financial constraint stemming from the decision by the National Revenue Authority (NRA) to block all its accounts due to the actions of the previous administrators from 2009 to 2012.
“This denied the administration access to resources, and subvention from the government is also yet to be paid, hence there is no available fund to pay the allowances,” he said.
Kanu added that during a recent staff retreat he informed the lecturers about the situation the college was facing and pleaded with them to be patient.
Meanwhile, Dr Kanu who has questioned the legitimacy of the signatories to the strike notice said he had no intention of negotiating with the aggrieved lecturers until they had withdrawn their notice.
When asked how he intended to deal with the imminent strike, ahead of the planned resumption of college, the principal said he wasn’t bothered.
“When we reach that bridge we will figure out how to cross it,” he said.
Alpha Kubakah, President of the Senior Staff Association, declined to comment on the issue when contacted by Politico.
© 2019 Politico Online
