The Academic Staff Union of Universities, Akure zone, representing academic staff members from public universities in Osun, Ondo, and Ekiti States, expressed concern on Monday over the inadequate funding of the education sector.
Dr. Adeola Egbedokun, ASUU Akure Zonal Coordinator, highlighted the link between poor education funding and the increasing incidents of violent crimes, particularly kidnapping, in the country.
Addressing journalists before the zonal meeting at Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, Egbedokun, accompanied by ASUU chairmen from various universities, also accused the federal government of not fulfilling its commitment to abandon the Integrated Personnel Payroll and Information System for paying university lecturers.
Egbedokun criticized the government for its perceived insincerity in implementing agreements signed with ASUU.
He said, “The government is insincere about funding education. They are insincere because how can successive administrations arrange several meetings where agreements were signed and such agreements would not be implemented? What has taken us to this particular quagmire is that the government failed to own up to the agreements signed with ASUU.
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“At this point again, we have to talk about the 26% budgetary allocation which of course is the yardstick set by UNESCO. If the government is sincere, definitely government will definitely know that it is the only solution to the present problem that we find ourselves in.
“Most of these people that are creating insecurity, the hoodlums, perhaps it was because they didn’t have sufficient education. If education had been properly funded, definitely there wouldn’t have been any need for agitation from members of staff because they would have been paid.
“Presently as we talk some people are hiding in the bush looking for who to kidnap because the government has surreptitiously removed them from having education. Education happens to be the only saving grace for people to live a good life.
“If this continues, we are talking about economic hardship, it won’t be a case of what ASUU is going to get, but it is going to be the case of what is going to be the next accident for the nation.
”Speaking further, Egbedokun said the use of IPPIS to pay part of the withheld salary of ASUU members was against the agreement reached with the union, adding that many of its members are still being owed several months of promotion arrears, ranging from 6 to 36 months.
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