The crisis rocking Tai Solarin College of Education (TASCE), turned a new twist as the entire management of the institution disagreed with Provost of the college, Dr. Lukman Adeola Kiadese over N50million earmarked for the school’s convocation.
The group under the aegis of Concerned Academic Staff (CAS) of the college, has now called for the suspension of the College’s Provost and immediate investigation of the misappropriation of fund that meant to pay staff salaries and arrears.
The staff union of the school and the management led by the Provost, have been on war path in the last one year over issues bordering on what they termed as none payment of their salaries, poor welfare conditions, harassment of both workers and students, mismanagement of funds of the school among other issues.
Addressing reporters on the issue at a protest held in Omu-Ijebu Campus, the Chairman of CAS, Mr. Ade Balogun said that immediate investigation of the Provost was imperative and would guarantee a thorough, unbiased, objective, meaningful and successful Convocation of the college.
The group also alleged the Provost of earmarked N50 Million for the upcoming convocation of the institution, as against the wishes and wills of the entire management, especially for none payment of the 64 months outstanding salaries and arrears owes the institution workers.
“It is imperative to thoroughly investigate the amount been earmarked for the convocation, and immediately revert the situation as the money is too much for just a day convocation”, Balogun said
He further alleged that there was an orchestrated plot by the Provost and some unscrupulous elements to scuttle the convocation and undermine the good intention of the governor in the payment of their salaries and other benefits.
“It is unravel that the Provost is planing to disrupt the upcoming convocation while the governor will be visiting the institution by hiring thugs and heap the blame on some staff of the college, especially those at loggerhead with the Provost, so, it is imperative to alert the public that Provost should hold responsible if anything happened on that day”, Balogun said
He said that it was wrong and unacceptable by the entire staff for the Provost to earmark such huge amount of money for the convocation, while the salaries and other benefits of the college’s staff could not be met by the school’s management.
“Indeed, its very laughable and unreasonable for an intelligent person to have earmarked such erroneous money for just a day convocation, while many staff of the college dying on daily basis due to none payment of their salaries for the past 64 months, we won’t accept this wasteful spending and the governor should also beam his torchlight to this in a matter of urgency”, Balogun lamented
He also appealed to the governor to make use of the report of visitation panel constituted by his administration which was headed by Prof. Kamaldeen Balogun in resolving the longest crisis rocking the institution, saying that only the implementation of that report could salvage the institution from retrogression and total collapse.
“The staff of the college is convinced that an unbiased and thorough investigation into the financial crisis of the college by the state is sine qua non to finding a lasting solution to the hydra-headed challenges facing the institution”, Balogun added.