The University Academic Staff Union (UASU) and the Kenya University Staff Union members will down their tools on March 12 if the university management fails to release Sh 3.9 billion salary and house allowance arrears.
Addressing their members at Egerton University Njoro Campus, in Nakuru County on Wednesday, the officials led by Uasu Secretary General Muga K’olale and chairman of Kusu Anthony Nyakoni termed the delay in releasing the funds by the public universities Vice chancellors as “blatant theft”.
“We’re not academic orphans but professionals who should be respected and the VCs and their mandarins at the Ministry headquarters should now know we have reached a point of no return,” said Dr K’olale.
He said the government was treating the lecturers and Kusu members like beggars saying “if by midnight our bank accounts will not reflect any change, we shall go ahead and paralyse higher education in this country.”
Kusu Secretary General Dr Charles Mukwaya said the forthcoming strike would be the “mothers of all strike” and urged members to support it 100 per cent by staying away from their work station if the universities fails to honour their pledge.
The Kusu and Uasu members were awarded a Sh7.8billion salary and house allowance increase following a Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) which was signed on September 20, 2013.
However, the VCs of the public universities have withheld the money and have only paid half of the bargain prompting the lecturers to issue the strike notice.
The VCs admitted that they diverted the money to hire casual staff and remit statutory deductions such as National Social Security Fund (NSSF)
“The VCs have been sitting on our money since September 2013 and instead of paying our members they have been squandering our money by placing unnecessary advertisement in the media,” said Uasu chairman Prof Sammy Kubasu.
He said two weeks ago, Uasu met the VCs who admitted that they were withholding the money but did not indicate when they will release the arrears.
“We cannot be negotiating what we signed for ever. The deliberate delay in releasing our money is fraud, theft and economic crime and these VCs should be cooling their heels in jail,” said Prof Kubasu.
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