A lecturer at the Department of English, University of Port Harcourt, Mazi Eze, has shared his frustration after being denied a N5 million loan due to his poor monthly salary of N191,000.
Narrating his experience in a post on his Facebook page on Thursday, Eze recalled his visit to First Bank, Choba, where he sought a loan to enhance his Public Speaking Academy Limited and acquire social media gadgets but was told by his account officer that his salary was not enough for the loan he demanded.
Eze expressed disappointment over the challenges faced by academic staff members at the institution, highlighting the significant salary gap compared to counterparts in other universities who reportedly receive monthly incomes ranging from N230,000 to N250,000..
He wrote, “Yesterday, I got insulted big time! By my UNIPORT salary!
“I went to my bank, First Bank, Choba to borrow N5 million. My account officer, a jolly good lady, said, ‘We cannot give you up to that amount as a loan.’ ‘Why?’ I asked.
“‘Your salary cannot carry it. Wait, let me see.’ She clicked away at her desktop computer and said, ‘Your salary is N191,000. We can only give you 1. Something million repayable within three years.’
“I shook my head and replied, ‘I don’t need 1. Something million. What I need is N5 million. I need to fully equip my Public Speaking Academy Limited. I need to buy some gadgets for my social media engagements.’
“The lady said, ‘Sorry Sir, your salary cannot carry it.’ That day, I went home without getting the loan. I went home sad. Angry. Depressed. I’m 10+ years as a lecturer in UNIPORT. I have a PhD And my take-home pay is N191,000.
“Some of my colleagues who are at my salary scale level in Federal Polytechnic, Nekede, Bori Polytechnic, and Rivers State University receive between N230,000 and N250,000 monthly. That’s what they told me. N230,000 to N250,000 monthly is peanuts in this Tinubu’s economy.
“At UNIPORT, a federal university, it’s N191,000 monthly! What’s wrong with UNIPORT? Or is it the same salary scale in other federal universities in Nigeria?
“In the next six to eight years, by God’s grace and through determination and diligence, I’ll become a professor, and my salary will be a miserable N440,000 monthly. Me, I’m tired sef!”
ValidViewNetwork reports that the poor salary being paid to lecturers in Nigerian universities has been a source of serious concerns as there have been mass exodus of people leaving the universities and other sectors particularly health. The issue of poor salary has caused industrial actions by both the Academic Staff Union of Nigerian Universities (ASUU) and Senior Staff Union of Nigerian Universities (SSANU).
President Bola Tinubu has, again, promised to implement a new minimum wage for workers in Nigeria and provide better electricity for citizens.
He made these promises while delivering a New Year speech on January 1, 2024.
