By Hakeem Gbadamosi

Copyright tribuneonlineng

The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), Adekunle Ajasin University, Akungba-Akoko (AAUA) chapter, Ondo State, on Friday raised the alarm over what it described as years of neglect of the state-owned institution by successive administrations, calling for urgent intervention by the state government.

The lecturers, who threatened a showdown with the government, accused it of starving the university of critical funding, noting that no capital grant had been released to the institution in the last seven years despite annual budgetary provisions.

Addressing journalists at a press briefing held at the AAUA Business School in Akure, the Chairperson of ASUU-AAUA, Dr. Boluwaji Oshodi, said staff welfare, infrastructure, and general funding had deteriorated to the worst levels since the university was established in 1999.

Oshodi, who spoke on behalf of the union, lamented that academic staff were currently being owed two months’ salaries (August and September 2025) in addition to a backlog of allowances and arrears running into billions of naira.

According to him, “The citadel of learning has witnessed serious neglect in the last six years. The major challenge confronting AAUA is inadequate funding, particularly the low monthly subvention and the non-release of capital grants by the Ondo State Government.

“It may amaze you to know that the state government has not released a kobo as capital grant to the university for the past seven years. Meanwhile, the Ondo State House of Assembly appropriates these grants every year.”

He queried, “The question is, what happens to this money? It is a wonder what happens to the money budgeted annually for the university’s capital projects.”

Oshodi explained that while the university’s monthly salary and overhead obligations stood at over N555 million, the government only provides a subvention of N223 million, leaving a shortfall of more than N333 million monthly.

Speaking on infrastructural decay, the ASUU chair noted that lecture halls, laboratories, and libraries were in dire need of rehabilitation.

He specifically said the Faculty of Arts and Faculty of Education buildings had become uninhabitable due to collapsed roofs and waterlogged offices whenever it rained.

He lamented that the withdrawal of TETFund interventions from AAUA had worsened the situation, leaving the institution without any reliable source of capital funding.

According to him, the university has had to rely on internally generated revenue to survive, but the shortfall remains overwhelming.

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The union further listed several outstanding obligations owed to its members, including unpaid promotion arrears, minimum wage arrears from 2014 and 2019, cooperative deductions, and unremitted third-party deductions.

On the state of access roads to the institution, the union said both routes linking AAUA to the Owo–Ikare highway were in deplorable condition, making it difficult for staff, students, and visitors to commute to the university.

Oshodi recalled that after writing several letters to Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa, the union met with the Deputy Governor, Dr. Olayide Adelami, alongside top government officials in June 2025, where it was agreed that a verification team from the Ministry of Finance would visit AAUA within two weeks.

However, according to ASUU, no verification team has visited to date, despite several reminders, expressing disappointment in the government’s attitude towards the plight of the institution.

The union also faulted what it described as preferential treatment of another tertiary institution in the state, which, according to Oshodi, had benefitted from over N2.5 billion in special interventions from both the late Akeredolu administration and Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa’s government.

“Why should AAUA be left to decay? An institution that has been prudently managed and sustained by the dedication of its academic staff deserves equal attention. What is good for the goose should also be good for the gander,” Oshodi said.

ASUU-AAUA therefore demanded the immediate release of special intervention funds to clear outstanding salaries and allowances, as well as an upward review of the university’s monthly subvention to match its wage bill.

Oshodi added, “While another tertiary institution in the state has received special financial interventions worth over N2.5 billion from both the Akeredolu and Aiyedatiwa administrations, AAUA has been completely sidelined. We ask: what has AAUA done wrong or failed to do right?”

ASUU-AAUA called on Governor Aiyedatiwa to urgently release special intervention funds to settle outstanding salaries and allowances of its members and to increase the university’s monthly subvention to reflect its wage bill of over N500 million.

“AAUA is our pride. It is a 21st-century university that deserves support, not neglect. With the prudence and commitment of its managers and staff over the years, this university deserves better,” the union declared.

NIGERIAN TRIBUNE