NATIONAL COUNCIL ON establishment RESOLVES UNIVERSITY/POLYTECHNIC WAHALA
Recently, the National Council on
establishment has approved the postgraduate diploma (PGD) as the bridge
programme for holders of the Higher National Diploma (HND) to rise to the peak
of their career just like their degree holders counterparts. In a meeting which
lasted five days last week in Minna, the Niger State capital, it was resolved,
among others, that the entry point for HND holders into the civil service would
henceforth be Grade Level 08, like their bachelor degree holder counterparts.
This, it is hoped, will effectively
and finally resolve the discrimination and career limitation that graduates of polytechnic
institutions had for years been subjected to in the workplace, especially the
states and federal civil service.
he National Council on establishment meeting comprised the Head of Service of the Federation; Heads of Service (HoS) of the 36 states of the federation; representatives of the federal and states Ministry of Education (who were represented by the permanent secretaries), as well as the National Board for Technical Education NBTE). It was gathered that the meeting also took inputs from the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB).
he National Council on establishment meeting comprised the Head of Service of the Federation; Heads of Service (HoS) of the 36 states of the federation; representatives of the federal and states Ministry of Education (who were represented by the permanent secretaries), as well as the National Board for Technical Education NBTE). It was gathered that the meeting also took inputs from the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB).
It will be recalled that until now, a polytechnic graduate with HND cannot
be employed into the civil service on Grade Level 8 and cannot rise beyond
Level 15 without additional qualifications (including a master’s degree), while
his/her counterpart with a bachelor’s degree enters on Grade Level 08 and can rise
to the peak at Grade Level 17 (equivalent of the Permanent Secretary cadre).
A
HND holder who aspires to that level will have to not only obtain a PGD in
relevant disciplines, but is also required to obtain a master’s degree before
he can hope to attain the level his bachelors’ degree holder counterpart could
attain, even without a second degree.
the removal of this dichotomy,
among other perceived institutionalised discriminatory policies, had been at
the top of a list of demands by the Academic Staff Union of Polytechnics
(ASUP), the umbrella body for polytechnic lecturers and had been the motivation
for several industrial crises in the sector. With this new development, HND holders
only need to acquire the postgraduate diploma in relevant field from an
accredited institution/ university to attain parity with their university
graduate counterparts. The national president of the ASUP, Mr Usman Dutse,
expressed satisfaction at the development.
Speaking with Nigerian Tribune on telephone
on Sunday, Dutse said, among other things, the removal of the dichotomy would
help change the negative mindset created in the minds of the Nigerian populace,
whereby they don’t attach much importance or interest to technical or
vocational education. “In the last admission, 1.6 million applicants applied to
universities, but for the polytechnics, only thirty- something thousand
applied. Then, if you look at it, the morale of HND holders is down; they are demotivated
because their efforts are not appreciated. the value of their input is not
appreciated, because what is considered is the certificate and where you come
from.
“This is what we have been agitating
for. About three committees worked on it, from former president Olusegun Obasanjo’s
time; former President Goodluck Jonathan’s time and this time. All the
committees recommended its (dichotomy) removal.” On the modality for the
enforcement of the new policy, Dutse said once it had become a policy, any
employer who refuses to implement it or continues to discriminate against
polytechnic graduates in their employ will be prosecuted.
related post
Visit the home page for more.
Check jambnews.ng for 2017 Jamb News Updates
No comments