| Report from the Rivers State Polytechnic, Bori says the school management has ignored the statutorily approved retirement age of 65 and retired about 70 of its staff members who have attained 60 years of age. The report indicates that the Polytechnics Pension Unit had on July 2, 2013 issued certificate of retirement signed by one Onwuka Emmanuel to the affected staff, informing them of their retirement from the services of the Rivers State Polytechnic, Bori with effect from July 3rd 2013. |
The retirement letters which also informed the affected persons of their entitlement being worked out, said they will be communicated in due course when they are ready.
Mr Onwuka of the Pensions Unit who acted for the Registrar said it relied on the current Rivers State Parastatals Pensions Scheme, Law No 4 of 2001 dated 17th August 2001, paragraph 4 sub-paragraph 1, page 11, which states that every officer of the public service of the state shall retire upon attaining the age of sixty (60) years.
Against the position of the Rivers State Polytechnic on retirement age, the National Board for Technical Educaiton (NBTE) had in a letter to all Rectors of Polytechnics and Provosts of Monotechnics informed and notified the various schools of the Harmonization Act, 2012 on the retirement age of staff of Polytechnics and Colleges of Education to be 65 years instead of 60 years.
The NBTE letter dated June 12, 2012 signed by O. T. Ibrahim, Deputy Director (ES office) for the Executive Secretary was received accordingly by the Rector of the Rivers State Polytechnics on June 19, 2012.
The NBTE position and harmonization of state retirement age was an adoption of Retirement Age of Staff of Polytechnics and Colleges of Education Bill 2012 harmonizing the retirement age of staff of the Polytechnic and Colleges of Education to be 65 years earlier passed by the Senate on March 28, 2012 and by the House of Representatives on March 24, 2012.
The Bill was also been certified to be true and correct decision of the House and in accordance with the provisions of the Act Authentication Act Cap A2 Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004 by the Clerk to the National Assembly, on May 3, 2012 and assented to by the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Dr Goodluck Jonathan on May 11, 2012.
Although, the Rivers State Pension Board had responded, referring to the notification of harmonization of staff retirement age of 65 years, but however informed the Registrar of the Rivers State Polytechnic, Bori that for the law to be made implemented in Rivers State with particular reference to state owned Polytechnics and Colleges of Education, the law must be domesticated through due enactment by the State House of Assembly and backed up with a state government circular.
The State Pension Board noted that in the present circumstance, the only law guiding pension administration in Rivers State is the Rivers State Contributory Pension Scheme for Employees in the Public Service Law No 7 of 2009 as amended in the Amendment Law No 1 of 2012.
Meanwhile, the affected people considered the actions of the Polytechnic as unjust and have called on relevant authorities and well meaning Nigerians to intervene in the situation and prevail on the Polytechnic to ensure proper thing is done.
Their argument follows that it is on record that Federal Government has by an Act of the National Assembly, harmonized the retirement age of staff of college of education Polytechnics etc in the country to 65 years. The NBTE, National Board for Technical Education, is in respect of this Act and circulated it to all the Rectors in the Federal and States to implement the said Law. The essence of the law is for the Harmonization of the Retirement Age of all the staff of Colleges of Education and Polytechnics, and its application is nationwide. Upon receipt of the letter, on June 2012 a meeting of the principal officers was convened, in July 2012 which meeting adopted the said law.
One year after, the Rector notified the Rivers State Pension Board, of the Notification of the Harmonized Staff Retirement. The chairman of the Pension Board instead if complying with the law now turn round to argue that the National Assembly Act is not domesticated in the state and therefore not applicable.
The question is why is it that Mrs Edna Alikor did not give this advice to ,the· other parastatals in the Rivers State? Why did she apply the old law of the state to the RivPoly alone? When NBTE (National Board for Technical Education) fixed salary for Rectors in Polytechnics in Nigeria to 1million plus as salary for Rectors, why did the Rector, Rivers State Polytechnics adopt the salary and not said it is for only Rectors Federal Polytechnics.
It is also on record that the Rivers State University of Science and Technology a sister academic institution owned by the state that retired some of its staff also recalled them.
It is also on record that some of these retired staff in RivPoly were guaranteed some bank loan by the Polytechnics just in April, 2013 and the loan was in the understanding that they had more 5 years to serve in the RivPoly. Now that the Rector is forcing them out, who will repay the loan?
On the Retirement, even the civil service rules require six months notice. But in this case the affected staff were never given any notice, rather a certificate of retirement and their salaries stopped forthwith, which is against the civil service rule.
Also in Rivers State, other parastatals in the State, Rivers State University of Science and Technology, Ignatius Aguru University of Education and Rivers State College of Arts and Science have equally applied the Harmonized Act.
The wrongfully retired staff are of the view that it is the position of the Nigeria constitution that any Law that is inconsistent with the provisions of the Act of the National Assembly will to the extent of that inconsistency be null and void, arguing that this provision of the Law is automatics clear and does not require interpretation.
The unlawfully retired staff expressed surprise that their retirement is out of spite for the Registrar or because the Registrar is not having a good working relationship with the said Rector, is now all out to retire all other staff of the school in other to punish the said Registrar. The Registrar will be retiring if on the old law September but the Rector applied the old law because of the Registrar to rid off the system.
This matter according to them deserves urgent and ‘sympathetic’ consideration as it will certainly lead to several other consequences if not properly handled.
They therefore urged the authorities to intervene without delay to arrest the situation and to recall them back accordingly.###
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Source: NationalNetwork
