The Speaker of the House of Representatives, Tajudeen Abbas, has described as embarrassing the situation wherein the salary for a university professor is less than N450,000 after deductions.
He said such a salary for university professors was embarrassing to the education sector.
Abbas stated this on Thursday during the 3rd International conference of the Gender Policy Unit held at the Ahmadu Bello University (ABU), Zaria, Kaduna State.
This is as the House of Representatives is contemplating removing tertiary institutions from the Integrated Payroll and Personnel Information System (IPPIS), so as to enhance lecturers’ welfare, reduce industrial actions and the brain drain syndrome.
Abbas noted that IPPIS a single-minded computer programme that is anti-intellectual, anti-education and completely ignorant of the issues involved.
The Speaker who was represented by the Chairman, Committee on Education, Abubakar Fulata, said the House would pursue the interest of the academia and one of those issues in contention was the issue of IPPIS which it would take a critical look into.
“It is our determination to ensure that universities, polytechnics and colleges of education are removed from IPPIS,” Abbas said.
“It is also our determination to make sure that education receives a substantial portion in the national budget, at least to meet up with the United Nations requirement of 26 per cent of the National budget,’’ he added.
The Speaker further lamented that the IPPIS ystem had downgraded education in the country to a level where teachers` survival was put at risk, but assured, however, that the National Assembly had an engagement with the vice-chancellors across the country, and they were made to understand that a professor’s take-home after deduction was less than N450,000.
