The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), Akure zone, which represents academic staff members of public universities in Osun, Ondo, and Ekiti States, voiced its dissatisfaction with the inadequate funding of the education sector during a meeting yesterday.
Speaking to journalists prior to the zonal meeting held at Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, Osun State, Dr. Adeola Egbedokun, the ASUU Akure Zonal Coordinator, highlighted the connection between inadequate education funding and the escalating incidents of violent crimes, particularly kidnappings, in the country.
Egbedokun was accompanied by ASUU chairpersons from various universities, including Anthony Odiwe from OAU, Pius Mogaji from the Federal University of Technology, Akure, Sola Afolayan from Ekiti State University, Abayomi Fagbuagun from Federal University, Oye-Ekiti, and Abraham Oladebeye from the University of Medical Sciences, Ondo. They collectively accused the federal government of failing to fulfill its promise to abolish the Integrated Personnel Payroll and Information System (IPPIS) for the payment of university lecturers.
He said, “The government is insincere about funding education. They are insincere because how can successive administrations arrange several meetings where agreements were signed and such agreements would not be implemented? What has taken us to this particular quagmire is that the government failed to own up to the agreements signed with ASUU.
“At this point again, we have to talk about the 26% budgetary allocation which of course is the yardstick set by UNESCO. If the government is sincere, definitely government will definitely know that it is the only solution to the present problem that we find ourselves in.
“Most of these people that are creating insecurity, the hoodlums, perhaps it was because they didn’t have sufficient education. If education had been properly funded, definitely there wouldn’t have been any need for agitation from members of staff because they would have been paid.
“Presently as we talk some people are hiding in the bush looking for who to kidnap because the government has surreptitiously removed them from having education. Education happens to be the only saving grace for people to live a good life.”