Anarchy, vote-of-no-confidence, inadequate facilities, declining enrolment, ASUU query tear LAUTECH Iseyin campus apart
Khalid ABRAHAM
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All not yet well with the College of Agriculture and Renewable Natural Resources, Ladoke Akintola University of Technology LAUTECH Ogbomoso, Iseyin campus in Iseyin, Oyo state.
The campus is still embroiled in crisis, a sort of anarchy is said to have broken out between the Provost, Professor Abel Ogunwale and the two Deans over what is termed insensitivity to the plight of lecturers and students, and failure to acknowledge the matter on ground.
Investigations by ogbomosoinsightonline.com revealed that the lecturers are up in arms against the Provost over his “handling of the situations,” leading to the staff passing a vote – of – no – confidence on him said to have been signed by over 2/3 of the academic staff and submitted to the management Tuesday.
Further investigations revealed that the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) LAUTECH branch has sent a query letter to the Provost “for scheduling a meeting for the period of the recent ASUU warning strike.”
It’s disclosed, “The university management issued a seven – day ultimatum for final relocation of all staff in the Faculty of Agriculture to the Iseyin campus,” a lecturer in the faculty who spoke under the conditions of anonymity told ogbomosoinsightonline.com. “However, it fell within the period of the warning strike declared by ASUU recently and without regards for the industrial action Prof Ogunwale summoned a meeting of staff.
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“ASUU LAUTECH branch frowned at this action, it is seen as sabotage and so instituted a visitation panel to investigate the matter, and it was found to be true. He will now be sanctioned.”
Another lecturer in the faculty who also pleaded for anonymity, added, “We passed vote – of – no – confidence on Prof Ogunwale because he knew the various problems and challenges confronting the Iseyin campus, and which pose serious setback to its survival yet rather than hammering this to the ears of the management he pretended as if all is well. He is not sincere.”
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It was also stressed, “At Iseyin, facilities remain inadequate, we have available a total 21 offices which is grossly inadequate. They mandated us to relocate, all lecturers, but shall will be sitting under the trees? There are only two lecture theatres and these are allocated to 300 and 400 level students, none for 200 and 500 levels students. A new building is under construction but it will not still solve the problem and when will it even be ready?
“There are no teaching and research farms for students, especially for 500 level students. So, students are under-trained. A land earmarked for research farms about 350 acres or so has been retaken over by Iseyin people. That is not to talk of acute residential accommodation problem. These are the issues that are not addressed. These are the issues that should have brought us to a roundtable for deliberations so we could find solutions. But all he is focused on is relocation by us. We are rational beings now. He is not fit to handle the situation so, we passed a vote – of – no – confidence. Furthermore, he wrote a letter of appeal bordering on ‘peace and harmony,’ but the content contradicts the title.”
In addition, it’s disclosed that enrolment has seriously dipped in the faculty and that “if things continue like this, the faculty might close down.”
“We now record dwindling enrolment,” another staffer informed. “We used to have about 2, 000 in each level but now it has dropped to about 500, admission seekers continue to drop. Then, look at the newly established Federal University of Agriculture and Technology, Okeho (FUNATO). If you stand at the gate of the Iseyin campus, you will be looking at FUNATO campus. This is a university of agriculture, ours is agriculture too. We charge about ₦400, 000 as tuition, that of a federal university will definitely be less if not almost free. And now, these newly established federal universities have put their cut-off mark at 150. So, if reality be told, LAUTECH Iseyin campus will not be able to compete. I am aware agriculture as a course has been abolished in a nearby private university and the staff in the faculty laid off. LAUTECH Iseyin campus faces similar fate.”
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A visit to the Faculty of Agriculture in the Ogbomoso campus shows many of the lecturers are staying put despite the directive to move. But there are no students to teach while at Iseyin there are students but no lecturers to teach them. The massive faculty structures and teaching and research farms at Ogbomoso are lying fallow whereas the Iseyin campus suffers inadequate facilities. An irony of fate.
“Government needs to retrace its steps on the Iseyin debacle. It was not well – thought out. Everything about it is jinxed from the beginning,” a commentator, who is Lagos-based, Mr. Benjamin Oyetunde, stated while speaking with Ogbomoso Insight.”Government should admit its mistake. That is the mark of great leadership. Institutions cannot be decreed into existence like that. That place should have started as an agricultural research institute or an entirely new faculty started. It is however not too late. Government should rethink it. Is it even wise to kill an adult child just because you want a new baby?”
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