Lecturers and the management of Ondo State-owned Polytechnic have been at loggerheads over the week. Alleging high handedness, corruption and acts contrary to laid down rules, lecturers under the umbrella of the Academic Staff Union of Polytechnic (ASUP) at the weekend asked Ondo State Government to remove the Chairman of Governing Council of the state-owned Rufus Giwa Polytechnic in Owo (RUGIPO), Mr. Banji Alabi.
RUGIPO ASUP Chairman, Mr. Oluwadare Ijawoye, yesterday said the call became necessary to save the institution from total collapse, adding that the institution was already on life support.
Ijawoye, who was supported by other ASUP executives at a news conference in Akure, accused the management of the institution of victimising union’s executives by illegally suspending them over unfounded allegations.
The chairman specifically said the removal of Alabi and replacing him with somebody with academic background remains the only thing that could save the institution from its state of comatose.
According to him, the National Board for Technical Education (NBTE) had written to the management that the polytechnic would soon lose its accreditation of many courses due to lack of facilities and failure to meet other requirements.
ASUP called on the state government to beam searchlight on the financial activities of the school, alleging several cases of corruption involving Alabi and other principal officers of the institution.