The National Board for Technical Education (NBTE) has waded into the Kaduna Polytechnic management and the Academic Staff Union of Polytechnic (ASUP) impasse.

Executive Secretary of NBTE, Dr. Masa’udu A. Kazaure, disclosed when the newly elected executives of Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) Kaduna Council paid him a courtesy visit in his office in Kaduna on Tuesday.

ASUP KadPoly chapter had last week issued a week’s warning notice of strike to the management of the polytechnic if its demand for non-payment of 75% balance of their salary for the month of December 2015 was not met.

Mr Kazaure said: “I have been to the institution and have been making the necessary contacts to ensure the resolution of the matter between ASUP and management of the Kaduna Polytechnic.

“I have engaged the necessary body and there is a positive response and I have appealed to the union to reason and see reasons not to embark on the strike as we make efforts to settle their entitlement.”

The NBTE Executive Secretary noted that the non-payment of full salary is not peculiar with Kaduna Polytechnic and called on the union to calm down and have the students at heart to enable them continue with their studies.

While congratulating the new Kaduna NUJ executives, Dr. Kazaure urged them to address the issue of quackery, training and retraining of the union’s members seriously.

In line with the demand of the NUJ, the NBTE Executive Secretary said the board will support the union in the area of skill acquisition for journalists to be more entrepreneurial to meet the current challenge of non-payment of salary in many media organisations in the country.

“Management will discuss with the board to introduce more programmes for journalists in the state. We would also encourage the technical vocational skills acquisition,” he said.

Earlier, chairman of the NUJ Kaduna Council, Comrade Garba Muhammad, appealed to the board as a regulatory body to wade into the industrial dispute between the Kaduna Polytechnic management and ASUP in the interest of the students.

He also solicited for the assistance of polytechnics through the NBTE to introduce special programmes for journalists in the state in order to help check mate quackery in the profession.

“The aim of the visit is also to continue with the existing relationship between the Board and NUJ council and to solicit for accreditation of the International Institute of Journalists (IIJ).

“We are working towards introducing skills acquisition for our members and we look up to the board for support,” Muhammad said.

•Photo shows NBTE Executive Secretary, Dr. Masa’udu A. Kazaure.

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