The Academic Staff Union of Polytechnics, ASUP, has called on the Federal Government to urgently set up a high-powered investigation panel into the activities of Federal Polytechnic, Ede, Osun State.
Addressing a news conference on Wednesday in Ede, Nurudeen Masopa, the ASUP President, accused the Rector of the institution, Dr. John Adekolawole, of corruption and favouritism.
The ASUP alleged that the Rector misappropriated over N240 million while owing staff several entitlements, target savings, and non-remittance of cooperative deductions.
The ASUP President said that Adekolawoles’s administration as rector had been characterized by religious bigotry, maladministration, highhandedness and victimisation, among others.
“The Rector upon assumption of duty as Rector of the Polytechnic has characterised his administration with favouritism and nepotism in the appointment, conversion, upgrading, and promotion of staff.
“His overbearing influence on the Academic Board had been preventing robust discussion and decision making on the floor of the Board.
“He approved accelerated promotion and controversial placement of his wife and upgrading of some of his allies without compliance with the extant laws.
“We call on the National Board for Technical Education, NBTE, the Federal Ministry of Education and President Muhammadu Buhari, who is the Visitor to the Polytechnic, to as a matter of urgency set up a high-powered Investigation Panel to the Federal Polytechnic Ede.
“This is to prevent a total collapse of the structure in the polytechnic in terms of academic quality, administrative uprightness and at the same time prevent the breakdown of law and order in the polytechnic community,” Masopa said.
In his reaction, the rector, Adekolawole, said all the allegations leveled against him by the union were untrue.
He said that the allegations of corruption, favouritism, and nepotism levelled against him were mere distractions of which he was already cleared by the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission, ICPC.
The rector said that his administration had prioritised the welfare of staff and would continue to do so.
ASUP CHAIRMAN AIDING AND ABETTING CORRUPT STAFF MEMBERS
Having gone through the Shameful Press Release by the Chairman of ASUP and his cronies who have never contributed anything positive towards the growth of the Federal Polytechnic Ede as Staff Members other than making trouble for Political gains, we are forced to respond to these unbecoming attitude of a Union Leader whose rascality and penchant for fomenting trouble and insulting his elders and colleagues (as summarized by a Former ASUP National President in person of Comrade Chibuzor Asimouga led CNO Investigative Panel to ASUP Ede in 2018) will in no small way destroy the good image of ASUP both at the National and Chapter level.
It is indeed shameful that the ASUP Ede Chairman (Mr. Masopa Nurudeen Adekunle) in a bid to cover his tracks and those of few disgruntled members is using money paid by members of ASUP Ede Chapter to sponsor falsehood on the pages of the newspaper against her own members. The Chairman of ACTU accused falsely in this press release is a Chief Lecturer whose integrity is unquestionable and also the Pastor of a Local Assembly in Ede. The ASUP Chairman has once boasted to the ACTU Chairman that he was going to ensure he unseat the Rector in 2018. No wonder he has decided to join issues with the ACTU Chairman on Social Media.
The fact is that some of the cronies of the ASUP Chairman are currently being investigated on issues bothering on Financial Misappropriation, Abuse of Office, Plagiarism, amongst others. The ASUP Chairman has continued to lobby the Management to bury the case even when the matters has been appropriately referred to the respective investigative committees to which the ASUP Chairman is equally a member of such investigative committees.
It bothers a reasonable mind to ask why is the ASUP Chairman trying to sweep glaring cases of corruption against officers he also openly accused under the carpet by pre-empting the outcome of an ongoing Investigation by quickly rushing to do a Kangaroo Press Conference organized and attended by he and his cronies.
It would interest the public to note that the Chief Lecturer who decided to crave anonymity is among those being investigated. He alongside an Outgone Principal Officer of the Polytechnic has been accused to have mismanaged the Polytechnic funds to a tune of over N10 million naira (in 2013 to 2017) to which records and evidences exists. To seek protection from investigation, they have gone to seek amnesty under the ASUP Chairman whose sole aim is to look for ways to remove the sitting Rector and install his candidate who lost out in 2017 during the race for Rectorship.
Little wonder why Polytechnic Education is not moving forward in Nigeria especially at a time when the whole body of intellectuals is seeking solution to curb the menace of COVID19 and come up with creative ways to tackle emerging global and local challenges. It is indeed shameful that few Lecturers has chosen Politics over Technical Education. It is shameful to see Lecturer who should be in their offices and Laboratories engaging in quality research gathering together to back-bite, and play politics all in a bid to satisfy their greed for power.
It is on record that the current Rector of the Polytechnic stands out as regards Staff Welfare and brought an end to Salary Cuts in less than two months when he became Rector. He equally jacked up the Part-time emoluments and other allowances for staff members within the same time and cleared most of the backlogs he met when he came on board as Rector. He was able to achieve this by blocking loopholes and curb mismanagement of funds by some powerful cabal in the system. Appointments to the post of HOD, DEANS and DIRECTORS were strictly based on Merit owing to the simple fact that the Rector was equally appointed on Merit which subsequently formed a template for Institutions like YabaTech.
These achievements definitely did not go down well with the cabals who has been milking the institution for years and who believed they must always be in power to oppress others. The Public should know that Corruption will always fight back and that is what is presently playing out. ASUP Ede Progressives opines strongly that the Management is committed to upholding the tenets and principles of this Government (especially in the fight against corruption) and we will continue to support actions that will put an end to Corrupt practices and man-no-man tendencies at the Federal Polytechnic Ede. The Polytechnic should be a place to teach and share knowledge and not a venue for playing politics.
The Federal Government should equally understand that the ASUP Chairman is currently being blackmailed with a threat of Impeachment hanging on his neck over his mismanagement of the Union Funds from which he draws N65, 000 weekly. Amongst other financial misappropriation, the ASUP Chairman has been alleged to have equally given a sum of N250, 000 each to Messers Ogundiji Ismail O., Aliu Abideen Z., Barr. Azeez I. O. and other executives that attended the last National Delegate Congress at Federal Polytechnic Illaro in 2019. In order to cover his tracks and avoid impeachment, he has decided to dance to the tune of these blackmailers and has decided to make it his fulltime job to fight the Management (particularly) the Rector of the Polytechnic.
We wish to equally draw the attention of the Federal Government to the fact that Mr. Masopa Nurudeen Adekunle collected TETFUND grant for his PhD since 2014 but has not submitted any progress report. Investigations should be beamed on why his studentship at University of Illorin has been suspended after he insulted his Supervisors who equally taught him at his undergraduate level.
Despite this path of destruction that has been chosen by the Chairman of ASUP Ede Chapter who barely has less than six months to run in his second term, Progressive ASUP Ede members has continued to work round the clock to shape the institution and make Federal Polytechnic Ede a force to reckon with amongst its equals. Some of the achievements gained even in the midst of the storm amidst the COVID19 challenges by Progressive ASUP, SSANIP and NASU members include but not limited to the following:
1. Development of a low-cost portable Infrared temperature body scanner
2. Development of low-cost and mobile respirator system
3. Development of automated soap dispenser and hand-wash system
4. An Immunity-booster recipe to help in the fight against COVID19
5. The first Polytechnic in Nigeria to get approval for Open distance, and e-learning Programme
Federal Polytechnic Ede is peaceful and progressive staff who have a job to do are peacefully going about their jobs. We, the ASUP Ede Progressives believes in the administration of the Rector and we are proud that young people have gotten opportunities to Head different positions based on Merit and they have equally and are still doing well. The Federal Polytechnic Ede under the leadership of Dr. J. T. Adekolawole was the first in the South West and second nationwide to implement the Amended 2019 Polytechnic Ede and also inaugurate the Congregation in line with the Act. All staff of the Polytechnic currently enjoy the CONTISS 15 Migration including staff below level 12.
Since the appointment of the present Rector, Students have graduated on-time and the school has regained its lost glory in terms of starting and finishing academic sessions in record time. The school has had two academic sessions uninterrupted back-to-back and would have completed a hat-trick where it not for the COVID19 pandemic that forced a global shutdown. The Management of Dr. J. T. Adekolawole and the Governing Council of Prof. Nasiru M. Yauri is indeed a blessing to the Polytechnic. For the first time, the Polytechnic’s name has been un-blacklisted by TETFUND with approval for high impact subventions funds released for development of facilities at the South Campus which is near 80% completion.
For the first time, over 50% of members of staff are enjoying TETFUND grants to pursue MSc or PhD both locally and internationally without any form of bias. The Governing Council and the Polytechnic Management have operated an open door policy and even given room for ‘aggrieved staff’ to speak their mind with a view to resolving their problems. This approach gave birth to upgrading and staff re-grading of 2018/2019 where staff that were underemployed were properly placed.
We wish to appeal to the public and the alumni of the Institution to ignore the rantings of the ASUP Chairman who as at Monday, 7th September 2020 has equally written petitions against members of the Union whom they perceived as enemies. Writing Petitions against his own member has become his signature and we know that whatever a man sows, he will reap. If the energy with which he organizes secret meetings to pull down the image of the Institution, if such energy is channelled into quality research, we are sure by now Federal Polytechnic Ede would stand out in the league of Polytechnics Nationally and Globally. Nonetheless, the ASUP Ede Progressives remains resolute and throws its full weight behind the Dr. John Taiwo Adekolawole led Management Team and would equally be grateful if the immediate past Governing Council is reappointed for a second and final term by the Federal Government.
Signed
ASUP EDE Progressives
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