The crisis rocking the Edo State owned Ambrose Alli University (AAU), Ekpoma has deepened as news filtered in that the Executive Governor of Edo State and Visitor to the University, Mr. Godwin Obaseki has allegedly directed immediate sack of unspecified number of workers of the University over the recently conducted inconclusive staff biometrics verification exercise in the University.
The affected workers in the alleged gale of sack, according to the report, include the staff allegedly accused of disobedience and refusal to participate in the biometrics verification exercise, the staff who participated in the exercise but denied printout and the workers who participated in the recently suspended strike of ASUU, NASU, SSANU, among others in the university.
The Special Intervention Team (SIT) of the University which disclosed this at a meeting of the SIT/Principal Officers of the University and all staff of the University on the state of affairs of the University on Thursday, 12th January, 2023 at Ekpoma was said to have announced that all the workers in this category are no longer staff of the University
It was gathered that Mr. Austin Osakue, a member of the SIT, who presided over the alleged rowdy and tension-soaked meeting, revealed that the SIT has directed the issuance of sack letters to the affected staff.
He was said to have specifically disclosed that all staff with alleged multiple ages or conflicting affidavits of age declaration will be sent to the University’s Staff Disciplinary Committee without further delay.
Mr. Osakue who was said to have read the riot act to all staff of the University also threatened tough measures in the following weeks in the University, just as he was also said to have insisted that the meeting was not meant to “massage the ego of anybody”,
Mr. Osakue allegedly vowed that certain category of staff whom he described as “agents of darkness” would be sent parking from the University in the coming weeks.
He was also alleged to have hinted that the State Government has no intension to review upward the present paltry 41 million naira monthly subvention to the University and disclosed SIT’s plan to hike school fees payable by students in the university to enable the university run without government monthly subvention.
According to him, the University’s College of Medicine and Faculty of Law have been identified by SIT as “centres of excellence” where students would pay school fees of more than N2 million per academic session with effect from next academic session.
Report further had it that workers who attended the meeting expressed shock over the attitude, character and behavior of Mr. Osakue who was said to have represented the Chairman of SIT at the meeting.
They described attitude of Mr. Osakue as a flagrant display of ignorance, coarseness, tyranny, oppression and suppression.
Reports also have it that many staff were not allowed to air their views on the critical issues or make suggestions on how to resolve the problems.
Rather, Mr. Osakue allegedly embarked on bullying, intimidation and humiliation of staff, including Professors that attended the meeting. The reports said that the meeting ended abruptly and in fiasco as a result of workers reaction to the outburst of Mr. Osakue.
The workers described Mr. Osakue claims that SIT was on top of the problem of unpaid salaries in the university as a hoax, alleging that the vast majority of workers have not been paid salaries for several months.
Investigation revealed that no fewer than 350 staff of the university have had their salaries stopped on the arbitrary order or directive of the University’s SIT without any form of query or existing disciplinary action against the affected staff.
It was also discovered that no specific reason or explanation has been offered to the affected individual staff for the sudden stoppage of their salaries since January, 2022 and till date this category of staff are being owed 12 months salaries.