The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), Olabisi Onabanjo University (OOU), Ago-Iwoye, Ogun State, has ordered its members to commence indefinite sit-at-home action, over the inability of the state government to fulfil its promises as regard a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) signed between with the union, in December 2015.
The Union, at the end of its Congress, held at the institution permanent campus in Ago-Iwoye on Monday, said the action became necessary following the inability of the university management to pay their July salary, among other issues.
The union said that the Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) in which the university management had been using to pay workers salaries had “dried up.”
The chairman of the union, Dr. Deji Agboola, while addressing newsmen at the end of the Congress attended Dr. Bayo Akinsanya, a representative of the Zonal Coordinator of ASUU, Lagos Zone, Professor Siji Sowande, said its members would not return to work, until issues as contained in the MoU are attended to.
Agboola said that the 70:30 ratio contributions by government and OOU salary payment, had practically turned to 0% contribution, saying government had abdicated its funding responsibility to the university.
He explained that the university had in the last 23 months received any subvention from government to augment its IGR for payment of salaries of staff.
“The situation at OOU has now reached a breaking point. The IGR fund which was being diverted to pay salaries, dried up. To us as academics, a situation where funds meant for specific programme heads are diverted is not only unacceptable, it is fraudulent. This fraud must stop at some point,” he said.
The action, according to Agboola, would affect the on-going second semester examination.
The union, appealed to education-loving people of the state, to prevail on the state government, to live up to its obligations towards the institution.