The Academic Staff Union of Polytechnics (ASUP), Oke-Ogun chapter has on Monday said that, it has dissolved own council,over many months outstanding which led to an industrial Strike action embarked upon by the union few months ago.
This is contained in a statement signed by Mr. Muyiwa Olawumi, the Okeogun Polytechnic chapter of ASUP, in a swift reaction to the governing council’s earlier pronouncement where it made a release that it has suspended the union in a communique on Thursday, September 6, directed that all academic activities resume immediately.
The union also faults the governing council’s dissolution of the union, errs the leadership of the council for approving the suspension of the union.
Full statement reads:
” ASUP (TOPS) SILENT ISSUES ON THE GOVERNING COUNCIL’S PRONOUNCEMENT.
1. ON APPOINTMENT :
Our several struggles from 2016 to January 2018 bought you into power, though, you were appointed by the Oyo State Government.
2. JOB DESCRIPTION :To plan, organize, coordinate, motivate, and direct the Okeogun Polytechnic, Saki’s institutional activities alongside the Management. The relationship should be symbiotic and not to destroy the system.
3. RENUMERATION : Although, you were appointed by the government, you are not being paid by the government. We pay for your services from the services we render directly to the students. Do we owe you?
We pay for your transport, accommodation, feeding and other self-increased allowances promptly. We sacrificed our legitimate DNP and EPP allowances for the benefit of other unions in the institution.
OUR REGRETS
°ACADEMICS : Academics cannot resolve simple academic problem.
°NEGOTIATION : Your action to coerce Lecturers to resume is uncalled for when you ought to have exhausted the negotiation window as contained in the reply of the congress to the purported letter of memorandum of understanding.
° IMPLICATION ON GOVERNMENT : That your action indirectly will portray Oyo State Government in a bid light in the eye of the public by a misuse of power and responsibility bestowed on you as council to the school.
°BAIL OUT : You failed as council to present our case demanding for bailout fund to the government. We are baffled that eight months of your inauguration, you have not conveyed our agitations based on reality on ground to the Oyo State Government.
5. OUR VERDICTS.
*LETTER : Your letter suspending Union activities is unconstitutional, illegal and is therefore null and void.
*THE UNION ACT : The council cannot go outside the statutes to usurp the power vested in the Registrar of Trade Unions under Trade Union Act.
*SALARY : We demand the outright payment of all outstanding arrears forthwith : 10 months of unremitted cooperation deductions and 7 months of full salary, which is equivalent to 11 months’ salary and the payment of our DNP and EPP arrears of allowances. Our patient and sacrifice have been stretched beyond limit.
*MEETING :Since you were appointed as council members of the Okeogun Polytechnic, Saki, we are of the opinion that your meeting where the purported suspension of union activities was made should have been held at the premises of the same institution, not at the Ministry of Education Science and Technology as claimed. As a result, from that date you remain as council to the same Ministry, not TOPS.
Your Meetings outside the institution are illegal.
°CONDEMNATION : The Union condemns and considers the action of the council suspending Union activities as : Outdated, Humiliating, Degrading, Archaic, Ex-Communicating, Barbaric, Embarrassing, Dictatorial, Provocative and undemocratic”.
*PROCLAMATION :Based on the aforementioned developments, the CONGRESS OF ASUP OF TOPS HEREBY DISSOLVES THE COUNCIL OF THE OKEOGUN POLYTECHNIC WITH EFFECT FROM THE DATE OF YOUR PURPORTED SUSPENSION OF OUR ACTIVITIES. THIS ACTION WILL BE COMMUNICATED TO HIS EXCELLENCY FOR FINAL APPROVAL.
