- ASUU alleged that some academic staff of the university were receiving double salaries while others were given undue accelerated promotions by Mr Soremekun.
The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), Akure Zone, has renewed its conflict with the Vice-Chancellor of the Federal University, Oye Ekiti, Kayode Soremekun, over the sack of its members, as well as promotions allegedly carried out without due process.
The union also criticised the federal government for its complacency despite allegations of illegality against the school’s management.
ASUU alleged that some academic staff of the university were receiving double salaries while others were given undue accelerated promotions by Mr Soremekun.
Mr Soremekun has, however, dismissed the allegations.
He said all the appointments, promotions and recruitments done by the management were ratified by the Governing Council and described the accusations as coming from those ”who have little knowledge about how the university is being operated”.
He challenged the accusers to produce evidence of fraud or nepotism against the management.
Angry union
Addressing a press conference in Ado Ekiti on Monday, ASUU chairpersons from all universities in Akure zone, led by the Zonal Chairman, Olu Olufayo, said the federal government should immediately set up a visitation panel to probe all the allegations.
Mr Olufayo added that the panel must look into how the ASUU chairman in FUOYE, Akinyemi Omonijo, and two other academic staff were allegedly sacked ”with brazen disregard to the statute that established the institution just for criticising the actions of the Vice-Chancellor”.
“This interaction is to tell you about the docility of the federal government on the administrative recklessness of FUOYE VC, Prof Soremekun,” Mr Olufayo said.
“We have shown to federal government, a document containing the rotten state of infrastructure, poor students’ welfare, wrong academic patronage, financial mismanagement, among others being perpetrated in this university under the guise of trying to protect some individuals.
“Gross violation of the university statute has become a norm in FUOYE where an acting bursar can be in position for two years when the statute stipulated six months. The university is still paying the salary of a staffer that left the university in 2016 while also paying HOD allowance to someone not appointed as Head of Department.
“While those who criticised them were being sacked, those who were perceived to be friends were being rewarded through illegal promotions, recruitments and appointments.
“We are still ‘marvelled’ at the indifference of the management to the reported scam by a staffer of the university who claimed to have solved a 156-year-old Reinmann Mathematical hypothesis and would earn $1 million from USA based Clay Mathematics Institute. Up to now, VC has not deemed it fit to ask the staff questions about this international embarrassment.”
Responding to the allegations on behalf of the VC, the university’s Public Relations Officer, Geoffrey Bakji, said the allegations were ”a figment of ASUU’s imagination”.
“The VC has the power to appoint whoever that is qualified to any position,” he said.
“And don’t also forget that the era of TSA (Treasury Single Account) and IPPIS have curtailed any form of fraud in the fiscal policy of any university. The university has been operating financial discipline
“I won’t comment on the issue of the suspension of Dr Gabriel Omonijo and two others by the management for unruly behaviour, because they are in court. If they know they have a good case, let them wait and allow the court to adjudicate on the matter.”
Mr Omonijo had dragged the vice-chancellor and the management of the university to the National Industrial Court over his unlawful indefinite suspension by the management.
He was suspended by the management without pay in February this year over ASUU’s agitation and petitions against the school’s management.
The school had set up an investigative panel which recommended the suspension of Mr Omonijo without pay indefinitely.
However, the ASUU chairman approached the court to upturn the suspension of the management on the grounds that proper procedures were not followed.
