By Shadrack Nyakoe
For the last two weeks, learning at Technical University of Mombasa has been paralyzed after lecturers and workers went on strike.
The lecturers and workers at the Technical University of Mombasa have been on a go slow which later turned into a full-blown strike over unresolved financial issues.
A section of students condemned the manner in which the go slow was handled saying the university management could have handled the matter better.
“These are issues that need negotiation skills. This mater would have been resolved much earlier had there not been egos clashing,” a student, who sought anonymity, told Touchline News.
Another student, however, was grateful to some lecturers who he said did not take part in the strike and continued teaching them.
“Some of our lectures were moved online while some lecturers stayed out altogether. All in all, these issues need to be resolved because we are the ones suffering,” he said.
On Wednesday, the Universities Academic Staff Union national secretary general Constantine Wesonga called on the TUM lecturers to remain steadfast and not give in to intimidation from the university management.
Speaking at the university premises, Wesonga said the management must respect the staff even as efforts to resolve the stalemate continue.
The TUM lecturers and staff want harmonization of their payslips, payment of a two-month unpaid commuter allowance of 2020, timely remittance of statutory deductions and implementation of the 2017-2021 local Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA).
“Once they convince me, they give me a convincing promise, or they wire the money as I am in the boardroom. I will tell you to go and work,” Wesonga told the striking staff.
Students at the university said they are tired of perennial strikes, a sentiment that was echoed by Wesonga.
He called on the government to take full control of universities payrolls the same way it pays other public sector workers.
“We are only 30,000 in number. The government can manage to pay university workers directly from the exchequer. So that the capitation they send to universities can only be used for operations and maintenance,” Wesonga said.
“Civil servants are paid directly by the government. Why are university workers being subjected to this embarrassment every month? We are not going to allow fees to be paid by students,” he said.
He wants the university to pay the allowances that were increased in the local CBA as agreed.
The university management was further urged to sit down with TUM union leaders for amicable resolution of workers grievances to avert strikes.
UASU TUM Chapter secretary Prof Josiah Odalo said their two months’ commuter allowance was withheld by the university management without consultation in contravention with CBA.
“The two-month deduction must be reversed. You cannot and you will not use our money to renovate buildings. You will not and you shall not use our money to buy cars for yourselves that is immoral and that is impunity of the highest order,” said Odalo.
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