The Governing Council of Rufus Giwa Polytechnic, Owo, (RUGIPO) Ondo state, has described as completely false a report by a member of employees of the establishment that it owes the employees, saying it’s the backlog of wage inherited from previous administration within the state.
The Chairman of the governing Council, Prof. Olubunmi Omoniyi, who disclosed this throughout a press briefing in Akure, the state capital, mentioned the Rotimi Akeredolu-led administration met wage backlog owed employees of the establishment.
Omoniyi mentioned the council met 13 months unpaid wage of the employees, however the council needed to supply for funds to offset three out of the 13 months owed, lowering the backlog to 10 months.
She defined that each one efforts to reposition the varsity, together with the appointment of principal officers for the varsity have been being thwarted by some forces working towards the event of the varsity.
In accordance with her, the council tried to introduce some improvements to boost the Internally Generated Income (IGR) for the varsity to be able to pay a number of the excellent wage as they’ve exhausted the subvention for this yr (2023)
Omoniyi listed a number of the improvements to incorporate; implementation of automated price funds, digital consequence uploads amongst many others designed to extend the IGR of the varsity to boost the establishment’s requirements have been blocked by some components within the faculty.
She mentioned the appointment needed to be suspended following a number of petitions that have been addressed to the council whereas members of the council have been additionally alleged to have drawn N24 million for the screening of the appointment of substantive principal officers for RUGIPO.
She nevertheless, mentioned all the method of appointing a substantive principal had been placed on maintain briefly to allow the varsity’s council and the state authorities to deal with numerous points confronting the establishment, particularly amassed salaries arrears.
The RUGIPO governing Council chair mentioned “Personally as I’m speaking with you, RUGIPO receives their salaries as at when due. When the Union met with me in November, I instructed them that I had been in a position to go spherical lobbying for 3 months salaries to be paid. I made them realised that the current authorities shouldn’t be owing them.
“This salaries owed amassed since 2014 below earlier administration. There was a time they (earlier administration/governing council) additionally borrowed N8 Million to pay wage on the polytechnic, which different establishments within the state didn’t borrow from the financial institution. All these items have generated a number of unrest within the establishment.
“Different establishments after they get their subvention, increase with their IGR however for this very establishment (RUGIPO), we don’t have IGR and the way in which of producing IGR shouldn’t be forthcoming from any of them.
“On the assembly with members of the council, they requested how we’re going to get 10-month salaries paid, I instructed them we’d beg the federal government to pay as a result of presently they’ve exhausted their subvention (for 2023).
“As an alternative of 12 months, they’ve gotten 14 months of subvention and we have been knowledgeable that they can not get further ones. I mentioned we’d beg in order that authorities can help us to defray this debt and that’s the state of affairs on floor.
“To my dismay, I heard they went on rampage with NASU chanting my title and that I’m sitting on their cash. I don’t understand how a Council Chairman will sit on salaries to not be paid. title
“As I’m talking with you, I don’t have any document of accounts of the establishment or any member of my council don’t know any about their account data.
“Other than our sitting allowance which had been budgeted for. We’ve got by no means collected a dime from any quarter on the establishment. All efforts to get the polytechnic to generate IGR are being pissed off (by the system.)
“The federal government have intervened and so they requested us to place the interview on maintain and we have now achieved that. I believe the matter ought to be put to relaxation for some time however nonetheless some are nonetheless going about attempting to malign my title”
Talking on the appointment of principal officers for the varsity, “Once we got here on board, we found that the tenure of principal officers will expire on October 9 2023.
“We swung into motion and we put an advert which lasted for six weeks in (the Newspapers), throughout the means of our commercial, we appointed appearing principal officers.
“Our council selected some individuals to do the screening which was achieved and a complete of N3.1m was accredited by the Appearing Rector for logistics for consultants from the Federal and State polytechnics (to hold out the appointment of substantive principal officer).
“To our dismay, we heard a number of rumours that it was N24 million, some mentioned N50m. We’ve got data the place the N3.1m was accredited. How can we approve N24m or N50m for appointment course of when the establishment can’t even generate as much as N5m
“Once we needed to start the process, we heard that we should always transfer from Owo and historical past had it that in 2019 after they needed to nominate principal officers it was achieved in Akure.
“Earlier than the scheduled date, I began receiving a number of petitions from everywhere in the nation with fabricated and malicious tales towards me and the council. We met once more to debate how we’re going to conduct the principal officers’ interview train amidst a number of petitions and allegations flying round.
She nevertheless, mentioned those that didn’t need the appointment of recent principal officers are those sponsoring unrest on the polytechnic, lamenting that certified students are actually afraid to use for the positions of principal officers as a result of angle of some union leaders and forces throughout the system.
“I believe in the event that they wish to go on rampage, they need to inform me and dialogue to see what we are able to do about it in the event that they haven’t been masterminded by some individuals who don’t want the interview (of appointing new principal officers) to be held, in order that we’d not have substantive principal officers,” she mentioned.
Additionally talking, a member of the council, Hon. Olumuyiwa Asagunla, advocated the implementation of automated price funds, digital consequence uploads, to boost the establishment’s requirements.
He known as for assist for the council’s efforts to raise the polytechnic right into a twenty first Century College throughout the subsequent six years.
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