UBa Lecturers Demand Payment of Outstanding Allowances

The National Union of Teachers of Higher Education (SYNES), University of Bamenda (UBa) Chapter, announced that lecturers at the institution will resume strike action if university management does not pay their overdue allowances. The Executive Committee of SYNES-UBa held an emergency session on Monday, 25 November 2024, to address the ongoing delay in disbursing teachers’ allowances.

The union voiced disappointment over the lack of payments during the second strike suspension period, which aimed to create space for dialogue and negotiation with the university’s administration. Despite this grace period, Deans and Directors of the university have not taken necessary actions, resulting in ongoing financial distress among the teaching staff.

SYNES-UBa issued a strongly worded statement, emphasising the negative impact these delays have on lecturers’ well-being. Lecturers have engaged in disruptive industrial actions year after year to secure their deserved allowances. This situation significantly disrupts academic activities and affects students’ learning experiences.

Delays Are Unacceptable

The union, while acknowledging its commitment to the students’ education, made it clear that it would no longer tolerate these delays.

“Unless the outstanding allowances are paid by the 27th of November, SYNES-UBa has resolved to resume a full academic boycott from Thursday, 28 November to Saturday, 30 November 2024. This strike action will include periodic sit-ins at the Esplanade of the Central Administration, a tactic designed to pressure management into settling the dues,” their communiqué read in part.

A UBa lecturer who spoke to MMI on condition of anonymity decried the situation:

“Normally each school of the university must received a subvention from the state which about 100 millions that is done in whole country. But we don’t know why only in Bamenda and only in the faculty of science that state subvention is absent since four years,” he said. “You can imagine the negative impact this condition can have on the training of student in that faculty.”

Furthermore, lecturers in the Faculty of Science, which has been operating without state subventions for the past four years, have expressed concern over the lack of funding. Faculty members revealed that their faculty has been without the usual state allocation of about 100 million CFA Frs, a crucial fund typically distributed to all faculties across the country. This ongoing absence of subvention has had a detrimental effect on the quality of training for students in the Faculty of Science, further compounding the dissatisfaction within the university.

As negotiations continue, the union has urged the university’s administration to address these financial concerns promptly to prevent further disruption to academic activities. The strike action remains a last resort, but SYNES-UBa has made it clear that the payment of teachers’ allowances is non-negotiable for the well-being of both lecturers and students.

Mimi Mefo Info