Musa Pam 
The Joint Plateau State Owned Tertiary Institutions (JPSOTI), has disagreed with the government over the removal of the heads of tertiary institutions in state
Chairman of the Union Comrade Peter Longbaam while leading other leaders during a press conference on Tuesday in Jos, highlighted the arbitrary removal and appointment of Chief Executives, citing the disregard for established laws governing such actions.
The Union questioned the criteria employed, expressing apprehension over the potential accreditation repercussions.
“We wonder which criteria was used to remove the Head of the Tertiary Institutions? The removal of these officers was not in line with the extant laws governing the institutions. With this development, the union is shocked with the development especially knowing fully well that, not long our dear government is a beneficiary of law and justice. We are afraid, these acts might be counterproductive with gross and unimaginable consequences in the accreditation of our academic programs”
The Chairman also raised concerns over the cancellation of employment conducted in October 2022.
He said despite initial efforts by the government to review and sanitize the process, subsequent actions led to outright cancellation, exacerbating the plight of already overstretched staff.
In a poignant plea to both the government and the public, Longbaam urged for a reconsideration of their stance.
“The Chief Executives of State Own Tertiary Institutions were relieved of their appointments and the recruitment carried out in October 2022 was also cancelled and new Heads of Tertiary Institutions were equally appointed on temporal
basis just a day after and without due regard to ethics establishing those institutions.
“The Joint Union observed with concern the politicization of removal and appointment of Chief Executives of Tertiary Institutions and outright cancellation of employment carried out in October 2022. It is in the light of the above that we are compelled today to call for this press conference to address, inform, and educate you on the danger and negative precedents the action of government will create in the nearest future”; he said.
He appealed for the reinstatement of qualified staff, emphasizing the broader ramifications of their exclusion on the system’s integrity and the state’s future.
The chairman reiterated the Union’s call for intervention, underscoring the collective responsibility to safeguard education from political maneuvering.
It would be recalled that Students of the University had protested the ongoing strike action that has disrupted the academic activities of the institutions.
However, while Reacting to the Union Position the Plateau state Commissioner for Information and Communication Hon. Musa Ashoms said that the heads of Tertiary institutions in the state were not removed but suspended.
He explained that the state government led by Governor Caleb Mutfwang is poised to bring sanity to all sectors of the state economy, adding that tertiary institutions in the state were not left out.
While disregarding the earlier protest by Bokkos youths calling for the reinstatement of the Vice Chancellor, Plateau State University Bokkos where the suspended VC hails from, the Commissioner noted that the heads of tertiary institutions were not appointed based on tribe or religion but competence.
Ashoms who underscores the need for harmonious and peaceful coexistence in the state also said the decision was for the best interest of the state.
“The decision of the state government to suspend heads of tertiary institutions in the state is for the benefit of all. If they are not fond of wanting at the end of the day they will be reinstated.
“I want to make it clear that heads of tertiary institutions are not appointed based on tribe or religion, that is why Nigerians are VCs in other countries. If an institution is situated in your place, it does not mean somebody from the catchment area must be made the head”; Ashoms noted.
New Telegraph reports that the state government has since appointed the new heads of all the tertiary institutions in the state all in acting capacity.
