Federal Government Exempts Universities, Polytechnics, and Others from IPPIS.
The Federal Government on Wednesday approved the exemption of universities, polytechnics, colleges of education and other tertiary institutions of learning from the Integrated Payroll and Personnel Information System.
It said, henceforth, remunerations to staff members of these institutions would no longer flow through the platform.
The Minister of the Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, disclosed this to State House Correspondents after this week’s Federal Executive Council meeting at the State House, Abuja.
The FG reasoned that the IPPIS does not afford tertiary institutions the freedom to run their affairs, Idris said.
The Minister of Education, Prof. Tahir Mamman, who explained the rationale for the Council’s decision, said the goal was to allow for the efficient running of public educational institutions nationwide.
He argued that Wednesday’s move is not connected to the integrity of IPPIS, the University Transparency and Accountability Solution, or other similar systems advocated by various bodies.
Mamman said, “Simply, the president and the Council are just concerned about the efficiency of management of the universities, and so it has nothing to do with integrity or platform options.
ASUU has instead proposed an alternative system called the University Transparency and Accountability Solution, which they believe better addresses the peculiarities of the university system, such as sabbatical leave, adjunct engagements and part-time contracts.
ASUU and other academic unions argue that IPPIS centralisation impedes the governing councils’ ability to effectively manage personnel and payroll, affecting strategic planning and the autonomy of universities.
This has led to tensions and a protracted standoff, with ASUU continuing to push for the adoption of UTAS over IPPIS, which they see as a foreign-imposed system unsuitable for the Nigerian tertiary education sector.
