The students of the Ekiti State University and their newly graduated colleagues have decried the ongoing strike by workers of the institution, blaming the school’s management for the delay in academic activities being caused by the industrial action and the inability to mobilise fresh graduates for the one year National Youth Service Corps scheme.
The EKSU chapter of the Academic Staff Union of Universities had, last Wednesday, commenced an indefinite strike, barely two weeks after the university management announced the resumption of academic activities.
We should have graduated two years ago, but the issue of incessant strikes has led to so much delay
The workers are protesting the non-payment of six-month subventions, salary arrears as well as cooperative deductions, among others. It was gathered that academic activities had been suspended in the school, but students and lecturers were still hanging around.
One of the newly graduated student in the 2016 academic year, Abiodun Fagbohunlu, disclosed that the academic calendar of the institution had been extremely delayed since last year, compared to other state owned institutions in the country and that the Ekiti State Government had refused to pay workers’ salary.
He also noted that that the Internally Generated Revenue of the institution was not even enough to pay salaries of the workers.
“The school management has yet to compute our result; that is for my set. The Senate of the school has not sat to approve our results due to the strike, and with the inability of the Senate to sit, the results are still pending. We should have graduated two years ago, but the issue of incessant strikes has led to so much delay. We should have gone for NYSC in November 2017, we thought we were going to be mobilised by February, 2018, but with the situation on ground, I don’t think that will happen next month,” he said.
A newly admitted student, who pleaded anonymity, told our correspondent that the school had been toying with the academic activities since last year, after the release of admission list for 2017|2018, over several issues, and till present, had not resolved all pending issues.
She added that the strike action had forced some fresh students to go back to their various houses since academic activities had been grounded.
“We want the Ekiti State Government to help us put an end to all these issues they have with ASUU so that we can have a feeling of being students of the university. After we came for registration late last year, we were sent back home, till after yuletide, now that a new year has commenced, I don’t think we should start it by staying at home again. We appeal to concerned authorities to find a lasting solution to all these issues,”
she said.
The Deputy Vice President of the institution’s students Union, Ms. Olayinka Alice, told our correspondent she could not divulge any information as meetings were still being held between the management of the school and ASUU.
“I can’t really say anything to the public, because we are having series of meetings at the moment. So, the outcome will determine the way forward. But be rest assured, something positive will come out of the meeting,”
she said.
The Public Relations Officer of the institution, Mr. Ajibade Olubunmi, didn’t pick any of the calls made to his phone and he did not also reply text messages sent to him as at the time of filing this report.
