Over 1,000 staff members of Nnamdi Azikiwe University (UNIZIK), Awka, employed between 2019 and 2020 recently staged a protest over the non-payment of their salaries for the past five years, alleging that N1 billion allocated for personnel costs was misappropriated by the institution’s management.
The protesters expressed outrage that despite the allocation, they had remained unpaid, with some claiming that several colleagues had died due to financial hardship caused by the prolonged salary delay.
“We are shocked and disappointed that such a huge sum meant for our salaries was mismanaged. Several of our members have died due to this non-payment,” some of the protesters lamented.
The University Bursar, Mr. Gozie Egwuatu, however, clarified that only 120 out of the affected staff had been fully captured in the payroll system.
Egwuatu explained that the employment processes in 2019 and 2020 took place before the federal government’s introduction of the Integrated Payroll and Personnel Information System (IPPIS), resulting in an incomplete payroll capture. He added that the federal government had directed the process to be finalized through the Head of Service, but this had yet to be completed.
He further explained that the N1 billion in personnel costs had been misconstrued by the protesting staff, as the federal government clarified that the funds were meant to pay arrears for the 2,025 full staff members of the institution, not the affected employees.
Egwuatu assured the protesting staff that the university was working to resolve the issue by engaging with the federal government and members of the National Assembly, who had raised motions on the matter.
“We are aware of their plight and will continue to push for the full capturing of all affected staff and their rightful payment,” he said.
The salary delay has added to the economic hardships faced by the affected workers, with the Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities (SSANU) and the Non-Academic Staff Union (NASU) calling for urgent intervention to prevent further suffering.