By; BAYO AKAMO, Ibadan
The striking academic and non academic staff unions in the six Oyo State Government owned tertiary institutions on Thursday threatened to occupy the Oyo State Government Secretariat, Ibadan with its 20,000 members if the government failed to settle the 15 months salary arrears owed their members by January, 2018.
Chairman of the striking unions Joint Action Committee (JAC), Prince Adeniyi Afeez handed down the threat when he led members of trade unions in the six institutions to the palace of the Alaafin of Oyo, Oba Lamidi Adeyemi in Oyo town. to solicit the support and intervention of the royal father on the crisis over the non payment of their owed salaries.
Prince Afees disclosed that the striking workers resolved to explore the option of the Alaafin to call his attention to the plight, agony and trauma of the workers after all efforts to secure understanding of the government failed to yield result, adding that Oyo State Government has not been sincere with the workers on resolving the issue.
“We, the workers of the six state-owned tertiary institutions are on strike because we are being owned over 15-month salary arrears cumulatively by the Oyo State government as a result of the illegal reduction of the personnel subvention to 25 per cent and fractional salary payment since January 2016.
“Today we are paying homage to His Imperial Majesty, Oba Lamidi Adeyemi, to intimate him with the pain and agony the affected workers are passing through as a result of the unpaid 15-month salary arrears, in order for His Imperial Majesty to intervene and prevail on His Excellency, Senator Abiola Ajimobi to restore 100 per cent personnel subvention to the state-owned tertiary institutions and as well, clear the backlog of the salary arrears” he said.
The JAC Chairman stressed that the committee the government promised to set up was not set up aside the failure of the members of the Oyo State House of Assembly to resolve the issue before they embarked on 2017 recess as promised at a meeting with the JAC leadership, adding that the striking workers have vow not to call off the strike until the government revert to a hundred per cent subvention to the institutions, adding that the workers will resist every attempt by the government to privatise and commercialise tertiary education in the state.
“We noted with dismay that all organs of government in Oyo State had not shown enough commitment to resolving the issue viz: none inauguration of the proposed negotiation committee of Labour and government which was agreed upon at a meeting between the Secretary to Oyo State Government-led delegation and Nigerian Labour Congress Chairman led Labour delegation, and failure of the leadership of the Oyo State House of Assembly to resolve the issue before they embarked on the 2017 recess as promised at a meeting that JAC leadership held with the Speaker-led House of Assembly Committee on 28th, November, 2017.”
Prince Afeez added “we therefore affirmed that the lackadaisical attitude and insensitivity of Oyo state government to the plight of the traumatised workers of the six institutions and the future of over 55,000 students (which are now at home as a result of the two months old strike) are borne out of the fact that Oyo State government officials do not have children or relatives in these institutions”.
Addressing the striking workers, Oba Adeyemi lauded them for being peaceful and orderly in their pursuit of their demand, maintained that the workers have done him and the stool so much honour by bringing the matter to him for amicable resolution and promised to take the matter to the government to appeal so that the workers can have course to celebrate and enjoy the yuletide.
The Alaafin urged the workers not to go ahead with the proposed plan to occupy the government state secretariat pending the time he would mediate,.
It would be recalled that workers of the six tertiary institutions owned by the Oyo State Government namely; The Polytechnic, Ibadan, Emmanuel Alayande College of Education, Oyo, Oyo State College of Agriculture and Technology, Igboora, The Ibarapa Polytechnic, Eruwa, The Oke-Ogun Polytechnic, Saki, and College of Education, Lanlate embarked on indefinite strike on November 2 over non payment of their salary arrears and reduction of subvention to the institutions to 25 per cent.
