The University of Malawi (UNIMA) council has reacted angrily to threats of unspecified action by Chancellor College (Chanco) students saying it does not expect to be intimidated by the students following a strike by the college’s academic staff.
The Chancellor College Academic Staff Union (CCASU) threatened to hold a strike to force the council to give them a 40 percent salary increment.
The development angered the students who gave the council seven days to reopen the college arguing that they are to take action.
However, UNIMA Registrar Benedicto Malunga said the council opts for dialogue and cannot condone threats from students and college staff.
“Council does not issue threats to students, it does not issue threats to members of staff, therefore it does not expect students or members of staff to give threats to it when dialogue is the best way forward,” said Malunga.
During the meeting that the council held on Sunday with the staff union, they agreed to meet again on March 29 for another gentleman’s talk on the salary issue.
Chanco academic staff have been demanding a 40 percent salary increment arguing that their fellow academic staff from other constituent colleges have better perks.
UNIMA has four constituent colleges namely Chancellor College, Kamuzu College of Nursing (KCN), College of Medicine (CoM) and The Malawi Polytechnic.
Bwana Malunga and your staff have run out of ideas. You dont know what you are up to. I think you are administrators and not managers. By the way, I understand that UNIMA colleges have CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICERS. What a fallacy, when they are NOT the top most officers in the institutions. By the way, I also understand that these CEOs are CTS officers. With this scenario I doubt whether UNIMA Central Office has the guts to sort out human resource matters effectively, if they cant handle obvious low level issues. Hence, I strongly propose that UNIMA Central Office should be dissolved sooner than later. Such industrial issues should be dealt with at instutional level.
Kodi mwamva? Onena ndiye analipo koma simkumva mnkutu mwanu?
Ine wanu,
UNIMA aluminus