THE Hope is of the candid view that President Bola Tinubu’s approval to exempt Universities, Polytechnics, Colleges of Education and other tertiary institutions from the Integrated Payroll and Personnel Information System (IPPIS) is a welcome development. We recall that myriads of informed voices had earlier clamoured for this and the naughty issue had become one of the major causes of industrial conflict, especially in the education sector.

THE underlying idea beyond the imported and expensive payment system was, in the mind of the Federal Government, a tool to streamline the payments of workers’ salary and thus curb inflation, over bloated staff and corruption (which had manifested as ghost workers syndrome, unauthorized employments, double salary payments and ex-workers salary collection) amongst others.

HOWEVER, ASUU exposed the high level and technicalities of corruption inherent in the IPPIS system and proved beyond all reasonable doubts that the corruption it set out to curb had not only overtaken it, but the automation of the system makes it more lethal than the corruption of the pre-IPPIS era. Therefore, it was uncommon to see duplication of names, (replicated in different ministries), fictitious names on the payrolls as well as the collection of salaries beyond the official stipulated amounts. ASUU therefore exposed the fraud in IPPIS and engaged the fourth  estate of the  realm in educating both the government and the fourth estate of the realm of not only the conduit pipes in IPPIS but also the fact that it has neither configured nor intended to countenance the idiosyncratic nature of the Ivory Towers. Thus, ab initio, the IPPIS had eroded the authority of the Universities  to employ and or attract Sabbatical/Visiting Researchers from within and outside the country. This in no small way had negative impact on the university system in Nigeria.

THE Hope  laments the financial losses to the nation given the unfortunate hard stance against the intellectual guidance of the egg heads. Beyond the financial losses, the students and the tertiary institutions had also lost access to collaborations, research grants as well as recognition that would have boosted the global rankings of many Federal Universities.  The removal of this obnoxious anti-development and corruption-laden ‘sophisticated’ payment shackles now makes it easier for the Council of the various institutions to recruit staff, pay workers without going to Abuja as well as meet the recurrent, capital and incidental needs of the people and institutions.

WITH this, the people’s President is gradually returning autonomy to institutions, thus paving way for innovation and development. It is important to observe that the President’s insight and order were a clear departure from the injurious narratives, that government only acts in response to strikes. Now, without strike, government is moving positively in the right direction. We, at The Hope, now understand President Tinubu’s bold statement that the days of strikes in our universities are over.

     BUT, while the IPPIS has been addressed, there are other areas that need immediate intervention in the education sector. To restore the lost glory of Nigeria’s education system, it requires more funds, political will as well as the understanding that a nation is only as solid as its educated nationals. Given that government alone cannot successfully bear the burden of education institutions, we call on other stakeholders in every geo-political zone of our dear county to show interest in financial and material assistance to our various education institutions. Not only that, but searchlights should also be beamed on councils and administrators as they disburse capital, attract, and utilize human capital as well as cater for the students under their watch. In the bid to ensure accountability, the management and Council of all IPPIS -exempted institutions are expected to be above board in criminality and must be sanctioned if indicted for corruption.

     THUS, it is imperative to insist that the tertiary institutions must peacefully attend to the execution of their mandate, and the heads of these institutions must see to the elimination of corruption and embrace transparent accountability. To the President, we push for the probe of the IPPIS, the workers and contractual agreement for its use. The President should however not hesitate to pull the plug entirely from the platform if it becomes an albatross and a hole in the nation’s financial bucket.