*
Calls
for steadfastness until victory is achieved
*
Demands
the intervention of the Federal Government for proper auditing
*Calls
for the solidarity support of the Students’ Union and other sister unions
The
Education Rights Campaign (ERC) Ondo State Chapter supports the ongoing strike
and protest at the Federal University of Technology, Akure (FUTA) by the members
of the Non-Academic Staff Union (NASU), National Association of Academic
Technologists (NAAT) and the Senior Staff Association of Nigeria Universities (SSANU)
against the corruption and various anti-worker policies of the Vice Chancellor,
Prof. Gregory Adebiyi Daramola and Bursar, Emmanuel Oresegun of the
institution.
The
protest started on Thursday 6th of October after the VC and Bursar
of the institution were invited by the EFCC on Tuesday4th of October
following the fraud and corruption allegations leveled against them by the Staff Unions which include,
but not limited to the refusal to pay their long-term allowances. The Staff
Unions are calling for the removal of
the V.C. with immediate effect and that the Federal Government set up a panel
to audit FUTA account.
According
to the Staff Unions, the VC, together with the Bursar has continued to
siphon and fritter away the treasury of the university on frivolous gifts and
fraudulent transactions including allowances made to the Governing Council
members, inflation of properties cost, illegal duty traveling allowances and
diversion of intervention funds.
The petition to the EFCC contains
documents showing the various financial misappropriation by the VC. As reported
by Sahara Reporters, the contents of the document are;
1. Misapplication of personnel cost
allocation amounting to N13,324,012
2. Housing allowance paid to the VC
while in government house - N3,851,730
3. Use of public funds to finance
private expenses – N4,147,000
4. Irregular payment of allowance to
council members – N1,500,000
5. Excessive cash advance amounting
to N8,882,540
6. Direct procurement of motor
vehicle without approval/waiver from BPP – N78,450,750
7. Transfer of fund for fixed
deposit – N100,000,000
To
us in the ERC, this is not the first time that a University management will be
alleged of siphoning the institution’s treasury thereby depriving the staff
unions of their allowances and financial entitlements. In fact, corruption has
become a norm in the University system and in the managements of other academic
institutions. Just recently, workers at the Obafemi Awolwo University had to
down tools and protest for similar reasons. The ERC considers corruption as an
obstacle towards the development of public education in the nation which must
be eradicated not only in FUTA but in every other tertiary
institutions nationwide. This is why we campaign for democratic running of
Universities and other academic institutions through the involvement of elected
representatives of students and staff in their decision-making organs.
Hence,
ERC calls on the protesting Unions never too relent halfway but continue with
their struggle “uncompromised” until all their demands are met.We also
challenge the FUTA Students’ Union led by Olusegun Oladele Solar to support the
struggle of the staff unions and use it as an avenue to demand a better
learning and welfare conditions for the students of the institution and also to
ensure that the demands of the Staff unions are adequately met. Students must
also be involved in the struggle to ensure that the needs of the Staff unions
are met immediately so that the school can resume as soon as possible. At the
same time, we call on the other sister unions to start their solidarity support
for the affected Unions as one tree cannot make a forest.
While
the on-going strike and protest can be vital in compelling the federal
government to take some steps and the anti-corruption agencies to diligently
probe the allegations against the FUTA administrations, workers must not for a
minute believe the illusion that any capitalist government can be seriously
interested in ridding the education sector and society of corruption. It is
only the collective vigilance of workers and students and their preparedness to
take political actions linked with a campaign for democratic running of schools
that can begin to tackle the crisis of mismanagement and corruption which is
strangling the education sector.
To
this extent,. the ERC hereby calls on the national bodies of staff unions to
start the process of naming a day for a nationwide strike and protest to demand
transparent and democratic management of various tertiary institutions amidst
other demands like free, functional and democratically managed education
sector, proper funding of public education, , rejection of half salaries and
better welfare conditions in the various institutions.
While
we continue to demand a better standard of living under this government, it is
imperative on staff unions and the wider labour movement to start building a mass
workers’ political alternative for the purpose of taking political power,
ending capitalism and putting in place a democratic government of workers and
poor masses which can through socialist policies bring a permanent long-lasting
solution to the fundamental problems facing the workers and public education. It
is until the commanding heights of the economy are placed under the democratic control
and management of the working people that the problem of fraud and corruption
can be permanently eradicated within society as whole and also in the education
sector.
Owoyomi
Damilola Owot
Ondo
State Coordinator
Education
Rights Campaign (ERC)
07065184322
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