Academic staff set to down tools in Katsina
Stories from MU’AWUYA B. IDRIS, Katsina

LECTURERS of the three Katsina state government-owned higher institutions in the state have vowed to embark on a strike action over the government’s failure to implement full HATISS for them.
The lecturers, under the aegis of Joint Academic Staff Union Forum of Tertiary Institutions, said embarking on the strike is the only option, having exhausted all possible avenues to ensure the implementation of the salary structure.
In a press statement issued to newsmen titles: ‘’Katsina state government paves way for brain-drain in the three long established tertiary institutions, ‘’the forum directed its members at the three institutions namely Isah Kaita College of Education, Hassan Usman Katsina Polytechnic and Yusuf Bala College of Legal and General Studies to prepare for the strike action.
The statement, which was signed by the forum’s representatives from the three higher institutions, noted with dismay the government’s reluctance to implement full HATISS upon all its abundant financial resources.
According to the statement, ‘’the mode of operation in the institutions is a national scheme of service for appointments and promotions of academic staff but local HATISS for remunerations``.
The statement explained that as a result of non-implementation of the HATISS, the three institutions are facing brain-drain.
As a result of heavy workload but light pay, many lecturers resorted to leaving the institutions for other willing organisations,’’ the statement added.
The statement further added: ‘’It should be noted that the brain-drain, if allowed to persist, means most of the accredited programmes in the institutions must be abandoned``.
Therefore, the statement appealed to students, parents and society to understand the problem and exercise patience with the burden of the industrial action which will commence soon.