LAUTECH going, going…lecturers lament harsh environment

Unless the two owner-state governments (Oyo and Osun) of the Ladoke Akintola University of Technology (LAUTECH), Ogbomoso, urgently address spate of crises rocking the ivory tower, mass defection of academic staff from the institution to other universities is inevitable.
Investigation revealed that the institution is fast losing its
seasoned academics due to what the academics referred to as “in conducive and harsh working environment”, as about six academic staff have left and without replacement.
Since 2008, there had been no grants for capital projects, as all on-going physical structures on campus were either NEEDS assessment or TETFUND, thus making it difficult to believe that the varsity is jointly owned by two state governments.
Similarly, all internally generated revenues were being exhausted to augment payment of staff salaries.
While a sum of N 296 million was being released monthly for the payment of salaries, additional fund of about N84 million was being sourced for by the university management to a wage bill of between N360million and N380 million.
Both the academic and non-academic staff are yet to receive their salaries for three months.
This salary augmentation is adversely affecting promotion arrears, earned academic allowances, pensions and gratuity, office and laboratory facilities.
Also, for the past 21 months, no subvention has been made
available to the institution, as Osun State owes 11 months, while Oyo State owes seven months.
It was further learnt that the university last received grants for research and development in 2010, as lecturers spend their personal money to carry out researches.
Since the exit of some academic staff, there had been geometrical increase in the workload for other lecturers, in addition to increase in academic programmes.
Some lecturers were said to have slumped during lecture hours due to stress and over-work.
In spite of troubles, trauma and problems confronting the
institution’s work-force, there had been remarkable breakthroughs among some senior academic staff in research and development, which attracted national merit awards, through personal sacrifices.
They included Professors Oloke, Mrs Olagunju, Agbaje, Ajetunmobi, and Ajao.
However, our correspondent stumbled on an emergency meeting of the academic staff union held recently where they expressed strong indignation over what they referred to as “poor handling of the institution by the Chairman, Governing Council, Professor Wale Omole”.
According to them,” people are happy that as a former university administrator, the chairman of the governing council will understand the rudiments, but we are indeed disappointed. Worldwide, governing councils attract funds to develop their universities. But in the case of LAUTECH, our governing council chairman shows little or no concern
about our plight”.
They said that at one of the meetings held with the union, the
governing council chairman admitted that all their requests were legitimate and would be addressed.
“Till today, all the assurances by the governing council chairman were to no avail”.
On the Vice-Chancellor, ASUU described him “as a nice person who is highly religious”.
“ But what ASUU confirmed in the university is that the VC cannot in any way be exonerated from the problems afflicting the institution.
ASUU and other unions had held meetings and subsequently advised the
VC on the envisaged problems. But all efforts were in futility.”
ASUU therefore called on the university’s Chancellor, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, to, as a matter of utmost concern, come to the aid of the institution and save it from imminent collapse.
“ We are appealing to our Chancellor for redress of the unpleasant situations in the university. If normalcy is returned, both the students, staff and the entire community of Ogbomoso would not only greatly feel the impact, the name will forever be written, the enviable academic heights of LAUTECH will also be sustained. We also call on the governing council, stakeholders and the public to prevail
on owner-states’ governments to be alive to their responsibilities.
This clarion call is pertinent, in order to save the university from imminent collapse, so that the labours of its founding fathers will not be in vain.”
Efforts to contact the university’s Vice Chancellor, Professor
Sulaiman Gbadegesin, were to no avail, as at press time, as he was said to be away on official assignment.
But a member of the Senate who pleaded anonymity commended what he referred to as “ the initiatives and proactive methods of the
management in addressing the challenges facing the varsity.”
“ Yes, there are challenges here, some of which were inherited by the
present management. The university environment not actually conducive
to work. There is no doubt about the fact that whatever breakthroughs
achievable were through sacrifices. There is no motivation.”
“Imagine a professor spending his personal money to build a pent house in the institution, for the experimentation of animals. Whose responsibility it is? It will also interest you to know that LAUTECH has no pension scheme, so, where lies the future of the academics after they might have meritoriously served the institution? With the exception of ASUU, bother unions, NASU and SSUCOE are presently on
strike, due to non-payment of three months salaries being owed the entire staff. The conditions under which we are working here is so terrible that we make personal sacrifices to make things work. We are greatly losing competent and experienced academics in this institution due to in-conducive working environment. All these are happenings due to paucity of funds.”