Two lecturers of the University of Ilorin (UNILORIN) have accused the institution of victimising them because of their relationship with the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU). But, the Vice Chancellor, Prof Abdulganiyu Ambali, says they are being punished for alleged misconduct, reports ADEKUNLE JIMOH and Kofoworola Belo-Osagie.
There seems to be no end to the disaffection between the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) and the University of Ilorin (UNILORIN) management.
Since the sack of 49 lecturers of the university for heeding the union’s call for a nationwide strike in 2001, there has been no love lost between the university and ASUU. The union’s national leadership and a faction of its local chapter, have not been seeing eye to eye with the institution.
Two lecturers, Dr. Kayode Afolayan of the Department of English, and Dr. Solomon Oyelekan of the Department of Science Education, who are chairman and secretary of the faction loyal to the national ASUU body, have been suspended.
While the Vice Chancellor (VC), Prof Abdulganiyu Ambali, said their suspension was due to cases of indiscipline, insubordination and dereliction of duty, the duo claimed that they were victimised because of their petitions accusing him of fraud. The petitions were sent to President Muhammadu Buhari, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and the Code of Conduct Bureau (CCB).
At a press conference last week, Ambali denied claims that the lecturers were suspended because of their petitions against him.
He accused them of trying to destabilise the peace on campus by inciting students against management. He also claimed they had queries to answer before they were suspended.
The VC said: “The suspension of the two academic staff purporting to be factional leaders of UNILORIN ASUU is the normal university’s regulation. If somebody is trying to cause disaffection within the university system, he has to face the music. One of the persons had two queries before his suspension. Their suspension had nothing to do with the last move they made.
“The crux of the matter is centered on insubordination by the staff concerned. Because the university has its own code of conduct for all its staff including all principal officers and the vice chancellor.
“The suspended staff had even tried to use students to distabilise the university system, but God so kind because of the nature of the students and the staff that we have sanity has been prevailing.”
Ambali claimed that the lecturers started spreading false rumours because they failed to gain control of the university’s chapter of the union after the UNILORIN 49 were recalled following a court victory in 2009.
“All those allegations are aimed at causing disaffection which they had tried to do in the last two years. If you could recollect they had wanted to take UNILORIN along at their levels, when we opened our doors for them to come in. Unfortunately things didn’t go the way they wanted it. Because of that they started blowing false whistles. It is not every referee that blows whistle that is talking sense. So we have to be very careful,” he said.
However, when contacted on Tuesday, the ASUU leaders told The Nation that they were not guilty of insubordination.
Afolayan said the duo had taken their protest against the suspension to the university’s governing council as well as the national ASUU leadership.
“As chairman of ASUU in UNILORIN, we have informed council about the development. Our union at the national level will follow up on this soon,” he said.
Afolayan added that the allegations of insubordination and dereliction of duty against them were not stated in the queries they were given. He noted that the reason behind their suspension had to do with their ASUU roles.
“They are saying we have been suspended for insubordination, not attending classes, trying to cause disaffection on campus etc. But we know that there is nothing that disconnects the suspension from our activities as legal representatives of ASUU in UNILORIN and our protests against the breaches, entrenched culture of impunity, graft and corruption in the University of Ilorin,” he said.
Afolayan added that part of the reason for the suspension was related to the duo questioning the alleged unjustified promotion of the Vice Chancellor’s wife, also a lecture in the university.
He said: “I am sure you are aware that before now we had written petitions to the EFCC, ICPC, CCB and the visitor of the University of Ilorin protesting the monumental fraud, corruption, impunity, nepotism and other grievous breaches going on in the University of Ilorin.
“However, on the 6th of February, 2017, we wrote a letter to the University council, of which the vice- chancellor was copied, protesting a classic case of fraud, indecency and nepotism involving the vice chancellor and his wife, Dr. Mrs Taiwo Toyin Ambali.
“What happened was that the VC brought his wife in 2015 and gave her a temporary appointment and placed her on lecturer 1 step 7. Then about a year after, in 2016, she was promoted to a senior lecturer. By the regulation of UNILORIN, promotion is not countenanced until after three years. Now what the VC did was to set up a special panel after all those who qualified in her faculty, the faculty of education had been, taken. And as a union we wrote asking council to reverse this anomaly.
“The same day, the 6th, after we had submitted the letter, the VC through the Registrar gave us a query, of a 48 hour ultimatum, alleging that myself, the Chairperson of ASUU, Unilorin, and the Secretary of the Union in the branch, Dr. Solomon Oyelekan circulated a leaflet on ’30th January or thereabout’ and that the intention was to disrupt the peace of the school among others.
“The following day, 7th February, we replied asking for the title of the leaflet and a copy of the leaflet as these were neither stated nor attached to the letters of query. To our surprise, we were suspended even before the end of the ultimatum!”
However, reacting to the claim that his wife was unqualified, Ambali said her promotion was approved by the appropriate committee.
“My wife commenced her career at the University of Maiduguri as a Lecturer II officer in 2006 and was promoted to Lecturer I in 2009. She later transferred her service to the University of llorin and was recently promoted to the rank of Senior Lecturer by the Appointment and Promotion Committee (AP&C). This act was sequel to the approval of both the Department and Faculty management teams,” he said.
Reacting to the lecturers’ suspension, the National ASUU President, Prof Biodun Ogunyemi, accused the university of having something to hide and suppressing inquiries into anomalies in its operations.
Ogunyemi told The Nation on phone on Tuesday that the university’s operation ought to be probed by the Federal Government.
He said: “UNILORIN is noted for acts of impunity; so what they have done does not come as a surprise.
“The VC came out on national TV to say the lecturers in question were acting in a way to disrupt the peace on campus. If somebody is saying someone is promoting bad blood there is more to it. What are the people saying and what actions have been taken to probe what they are saying?
“We have reason to believe that UNILORIN has a lot to hide. They don’t want to encourage openness, probity and transparency.
“These two men are the chairman and secretary of ASUU in the university recognised by the national body. They have raised questions about the lack of transparency and because the university does not want to respond, they chose to send them away from campus. They are not the only one with questions – they were just the bold ones – but others are being suppressed.
“Government needs to go into the university and look into the operations of that university critically. For many years, the university has been encouraging the operation of an illegal union that calls itself ASUU but not recognised by us. The university has been collecting money in the name of ASUU and giving it to another group not recognised by the union,” he said.
