Oyo tertiary institution workers take protest against Ajimobi to Alaafin
Workers of Oyo Stateowned tertiary institutions under the umbrella of the Joint Action Committee (JAC) yesterday staged a protest in Oyo town and reported the state governor, Senator Abiola Ajimobi, to the Alaafin of Oyo, Oba Lamidi Adeyemi.
The six tertiary institutions owned by the state are The Polytechnic, Ibadan; Emmanuel Alayande College of Education, Oyo; State College of Education, Lanlante; Oyo State College of Agriculture and Technology, Igboora; The Oke Ogun Polytechnic, Saki and the The Ibarapa Polytechnic, Eruwa.
The chairman of the Joint Action Committee Prince, Adeniyi Babatunde, who led scores of workers of the institutions to the palace of Alaafin, said they were in the palace to tell Alaafin that the state government was owing workers over 15 months of salary arrears and the reduction of the personnel subventions to 25 percent.
He said the unions chose industrial action when all other efforts to resolve issues of infrastructure decay and illegal reduction in salaries of workers failed.
He said all organs of government had not shown enough commitment to the plight of the striking workers and the future of over 55, 000 students in the state.
“We are therefore calling on Ike Babayeye, Oba (Dr.) Lamidi Adeyemi, Alaafin of Oyo and the good people of Oyo State to prevail on the government, to avert the January 2018 planned masses action at the state secretariat by over 10,000 workers of these institutions,” he said.
In his reaction, the monarch urged aggrieved workers to exercise patience.
“I have contacted the governor but his aide said he was at a function but I have sent a text message to him that we have some important discussion over the salary of the teachers in state-owned tertiary institutions,” he said.