All academic staff in obafemi awolowo university Ile-Ife have approved a fresh template for the disbursement of earned academic allowance(EAA), DAILY GIST can report.
The university’s public relations officer, Mr. Abiodun Olarewaju confirmed the development to DAILY GIST on Tuesday evening
The decision was reached during an emergency meeting called by the vice chancellor with the academic staff of the university on Tuesday after ASUU commences Indefinite strike.
The University vice-chancellor, Prof. Eyitope ogunbodede had, hours after the declaration of strike by ASUU, called for an emergency meeting with all academic staff, irrespective of union affiliation.
Although it was not clear if any ASUU lecturer attended the meeting on Tuesday, ASUU OAU Chairman, Adeola Egbedokun noted that he directed its members to ignore the meeting with the vice chancellor on Tuesday.
He described the vice-chancellor’s move as treacherous.
Mr Abiodun exclusively told DAILY GIST that the lecturers have agreed on a new acceptable template that will be developed for the sharing of the controversial earned academic allowance.
DAILY GIST gathered that at least 400 academic staff of the university attended the meeting called by the vice-chancellor on Monday.
In his words, Mr Abiodun said; “The management has mandated to set up a committee of three persons that will review the template every members of academic staff would fill for the disbursement of the earned academic allowance.
It was also learnt that the lecturers agreed that the forms should be ready and filled and the money paid latest by Friday or next week.
However when DAILY GIST contacted ASUU OAU Chairman, Adeola Egbedokun on Tuesday on the development, He said ASUU directed its members not to attend the meeting because it was treacherous on the part of the VC to call for such meeting in a university community.
Egbedokun noted that ”the vice chancellor has always interacted with the Union before now so why did he resort to calling academic staff?”
”we have described the meeting as a charade and the only thing that can come out of such meeting is disgrace, he added
When asked if ASUU will subscribe to the new arrangement by the university and possibly suspend its ongoing strike, the chairman of the union on the campus, Adeola Egbedokun, said he has not heard from the university of such an arrangement.
its bulletin dedicated to give updates on the ongoing strike and which was issued on Tuesday, ASUU said it submitted all required documents for the verification, yet “the VC refused to disburse our EAA.”
ASUU said it is left with no other option than “the present action and our members should be rest assured that we shall not succumb to blackmail.”
The delayed disbursement of EAA has been due to the failure of ASUU and CONUA to arrive at a consensus on the sharing formula.
While ASUU had declared a strike over the non-payment of the funds on Monday, CONUA said its members are not on strike.
Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) and Congress of Universities Academic (CONUA) are the two academic unions that operate as parallel bodies with almost similar modus operandi, even though the latter is a breakaway faction of the former.
How CONUA came into existence?
In February 2018, some aggrieved lecturers of ASUU-OAU complained of marginalisation and of being unfairly treatment, a development that resulted in a splinter group that birthed CONUA the following month.
At its inauguration, the National Coordinator of CONUA, Dr. Niyi Sunmonu, said the sole purpose of CONUA was to redirect unionism, restore peace and stability in universities in Nigeria and come up with new approaches of engagement in addressing members’ welfare.
CONUA which started in OAU over three years ago has tentacles in Ambrose Alli University, Ekpoma; Federal University, Oye Ekiti; Federal University, Lokoja; and Kwara State University, Malete.
Ignore ASUU, — OAU asks Students, Parent
Following the announcement of a strike action taken by the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) in OAU, the management stated that lectures are still ongoing in the institution.
In a statement made available to DAILY GIST by the university PRO, Mr Abiodun Olarewaju, the management noted that the overwhelming majority of the academic staff in OAU “are not on strike neither do they have the intention of going on any strike action.”
He urged the general public, particularly the students, their parents and guardians, to ignore the purported strike action by the ASUU.
Olarewaju assured the public of an uninterrupted academic calendar, advising students to go about their normal academic activities because there is no cause for concern or alarm.
