Ibadan-The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), Ladoke Akintola University of Technology (LAUTECH), Ogbomoso chapter yesterday took a swipe at the Governors of Osun and Oyo States over unpaid ‎13 months subvention to the two institutions .

ASUU in a release signed ‎by its Chairman, Dr Oyebamiji Oyegoke and made available to newsmen in Ibadan raised alarm on the deteriorating health of academic staff who were made to work throughout the year without rest in order to raise the Internally Generated Revenue.

The release entitled “How Not to Run Public University:
the painful truth on the state of affairs at LAUTECH” chronicled the problems facing the university to include poor funding, absence of Health Insurance for academic staff, ‎non-payment of salaries of workers and pension gratuities.

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While Osun state under Governor Rauf Aregbesola was accused of owing 11 ‎months, Governor Abiola Ajimobi of Oyo state owed two months.

Oyebamiji said the union decided to call on Nigerians to prevail on the two-owner states to do the needful and rescue the institution from imminent collapse adding that the latest save our soul is coming after lots of unsuccessful attempts at meeting the two Executive Governors of LAUTECH, in persons of Mr. Rauf Aregbesola of the State of Osun and his counterpart, Senator Abiola Ajimobi of Oyo State.

“Responsibility behoves us therefore to call the attention of the general public to the following observations of how not to run a public University; especially one, on which people’s aspiration and hope lie for technological and economic transformation. Non-payment of subvention to the University: This has now become the norm between Oyo and Osun states. A lump-sum amount of 13 months’ subventions have not been paid with Osun state owing 11 months of this indebtedness.
Welfare issues are now jettisoned: For example, payment of salary, pension and gratuity to workers are now put in abeyance since salaries, when available, must be supplemented from internally generated revenue (IGR) by the University.
Workers’ health imperilled: There is no available period to observe annual leave as academic calendar must be kept rolling so as to bring in IGR to sustain the University.Absence of health insurance policies: The University does not have a board of health neither has it subscribed to anything like National Health Insurance Scheme (NIHS).
Poor funding: This has resulted into absence of any visible projects in the University except for those got from TETFUND and Special Intervention Funds which are outcome of ASUU’s persistent struggles.
While Oyo State has braced up in paying some of its own indebtedness to the University, its counterpart in Osun State has refused to redeem its own image in paying the 11 months’ subvention accruing to it.
The Executive Governors of Oyo and Osun are our leaders who gave us hope by their promise of December 12, 2012, they must see to its fulfilment; for such is our expectation of the legacy which they have inherited from past leaders and which they owe history to sustain.”