ASUP urges Fubara to reconstitute Rivers Health College governing council

The Academic Staff Union of Polytechnics (ASUP), Rivers State College of Health Science and Management Technology chapter, has appealed to the Rivers State Government to urgently reconstitute the institution’s Governing Council, which it said had been absent for about a decade.

The ASUP Chairman of the college, Mrs Obinna Destiny, appealed when the Commissioner for Education visited the institution as part of an inspection tour on Monday.

Destiny said the prolonged absence of a Governing Council had negatively affected the stability, accountability, staff welfare and overall development of the institution.

She also called on Governor Siminalayi Fubara to approve the implementation of consolidated academic allowances and end-of-academic allowances for academic staff of state-owned polytechnics and colleges of technology.

According to her, the implementation would address some of the welfare concerns of academic staff and align the state-owned institutions with agreed conditions for academic workers.

The ASUP chairman further drew the attention of the state government to the dilapidated and inadequate infrastructure in the college, as well as the perennial flooding affecting the institution.

“I want to appeal to Governor Siminalayi Fubara to reconstitute the college governing council, which has been absent for about a decade. The college remains the only tertiary institution in the state without a governing council, which has affected institutional stability, accountability, and staff welfare and development.

“I also want to further appeal to his excellency to approve the implementation of the consolidated academic tools allowances for the state-owned Polytechnics and colleges of technology as agreed between ASUP and the federal government. May I also draw the attention of our dear governor to the issues of dilapidated and inadequate infrastructure and perennial flooding within the college. So we plead with the governor to help us in the amendment of the college law to facilitate the conversion of the college to a Polytechnic.”