Rivers polytechnics face shutdown over unpaid lecturer allowances

The Academic Staff Union of Polytechnics (ASUP) Zone D has warned that academic activities in three Rivers State polytechnics may be halted if lecturers’ allowances are not paid by the end of November. Dr Richard Iloma, the zone coordinator, issued the warning in a statement from Port Harcourt on Monday.

Iloma instructed the union chairmen at Kenule Beeson Saro‑Wiwa Polytechnic, Bori; Captain Elechi Amadi Polytechnic, Rumuola; and Rivers State College of Health Science and Management Technology, Port Harcourt to mobilise members for a shutdown if the Consolidated Academic Tools Allowance (CATA) and Earned Academic Allowance (EAA) are not implemented.

He reminded that the Federal Government and ASUP signed an agreement on 8 April 2026 to roll out the allowances from January 2026, and that they have already been paid in federal polytechnics. State governments were expected to follow suit, but compliance has been poor.

ASUP’s national leadership wrote to state governors on 5 August and 21 September 2026 urging implementation, yet no satisfactory response was received. The union’s National Executive Council, at its 118th meeting in Abuja on 22 October, issued a 15‑day ultimatum starting 27 October, directing zonal coordinators to monitor compliance.

Iloma said Rivers ASUP chapters will obey the national directive and that a total shutdown will commence if there is no clear indication of CATA/EAA implementation by the end of November.