By Dayo Johnson

FOR seven days, the Federal University of Technology, Akure, Ondo State was shut down, no thanks to aggrieved workers of the institution, who wanted the Vice Chancellor, Prof Adebiyi Daramola, ousted.

•Federal University of Technology Akure, Ondo State. INSET: Prof Adebiyi Daramola, VC

Three non-academic staff of the institution were up in arms against the institution’s Vice Chancellor over some irreconcilable issues. His travails started a days after he and the Institution Bursar Emmanuel Oresegun were let off the hook by the anti-graft agency, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, on allegation of fraud and mismanagement of the institution’s funds.

Vanguard learned that the petition against Prof Daramola emanated from the institution where he was alleged to have been receiving furniture allowance annually while  paying himself a housing allowance while living in the VC’s quarters amongst other misdemeanours.

Anti-graft agency

So when the anti-graft agency decided to let him off after interrogation, hell was let loose in the institution as his adversaries thought they had seen his end.

Prof Daramola’s five year tenure  is expected to elapse in April 2017 but the non academic staff in the institution are in a hurry to send him packing following the frosty relation that exists between him and the unions in the institution.

Daramola’s present travails is coming barely a week after members of the Academic Staff Union of Universities, ASUU, chapter of the  institution, accused him of high handedness,insensitivity and gross misconduct over the sack of 44 staff of the school since January 4, 2016 and the closure of the school.

While the war with ASUU was still ranging, another reared its ugly head as the embattled Vice Chancellor became the guest of the anti-corruption agency in Ibadan, Oyo state together with the institution’s  Bursar.

The authorities, in a desperate move to douse the tension, issued a statement exonerating the Vice Chancellor.

FUTA reacts: Its spokesman, Adebanjo Adegbenro said that the two principal officers of the university have no skeleton in their cupboards, and as such have nothing to fear.

Adegbenro was emphatic that the VC “was not arrested but invited by the EFCC to provide information over issues relating to his stewardship as the Chief Executive of the institution. As part of its statutory responsibilities, the EFCC invited the Vice Chancellor to provide clarification over issues relating to his stewardship in the university over a period of time.

“The Vice Chancellor as a law abiding citizen duly honored the invitation and he cooperated with the commission by providing needed clarification and he was allowed to return to Akure the same day.”

Staff unions adamant: But  members of three non academic staff unions in the institution namely the National Association of Staff Union, NASU; National Association of Academic Technologist, NAAT and Senior Staff Association of Nigeria Universities, SSANU, were not impressed that the VC was allowed to get  by the EFCC. They wanted him to continue to cool his heels in EFCC custody.

Allegation of abuse of office

A congress  was hurriedly called and it was unanimously agreed that a seven day protest be embarked upon to run Daramola out of the institution over the allegation of abuse of office and misappropriation of funds levelled against him by the EFCC.

Their spokesman, who is Chairman of SSANU, Comrade Dele Durojaiye said the “protest is premised on the arrest of the Vice Chancellor by the EFCC. EFCC arrested him and most of the allegations levelled against him are true and he cannot be under investigation with EFCC and continue to stay in office using the university resources, so he needed to vacate the office pending the investigation and this is why the workers are protesting.

“He has been running this university like an emperor and like his personal properties. You can imagine a situation where a government official living in government quarters and he is still collecting housing allowance.

Purse of the university

This is someone who will dip his hands into the purse of the university to the tune of N1m to support somebody’s wedding, while also helping himself to the institution’s money for his children wedding.

“We want to put an end to this and that’s why the union in the school said the man must go, we have given a four point  demand to the federal government .

“Until all these are fulfilled, there will be no peace in this university. We will not allow this man to step into this campus, he should be removed and this will bring peace to the campus.”

Visitation panel: Worried by the shutting down of the institution, the management in a bid to douse tension  said it will  welcome any visitation panel set up by the Federal Government to investigate the allegation of fraud against the VC. The institution’s Deputy Vice Chancellor (Academics), Prof. Olatunde Arayela wondered why the protesting workers wanted to be judge in their own case.

Arayela said they should not presume that the VC is guilty until after the investigation by the anti-graft agency is concluded.

Genesis of the crisis: He traced the genesis of the crisis to the position of the university on the circular from the Federal Government which states that Staff schools are established as private enterprises and to be funded by the institutions that established them.

He said the management of FUTA relieved the teachers of the staff private school of their jobs on the basis of the circular from the federal government and opened windows for them to retain their jobs by applying for the same under the management of the institution board.

“The implementation of the Federal Government directives by the university management to the unions is a major perceived offence of the Vice Chancellor,” he said.

SUG defends VC

Meanwhile the Student Union Government, SUG, President Segun  Ogunsina condemned the agitation of the unions saying: “It is an action against the collective and progressive interest of the development in FUTA. “The massive developmental projects aesthetically littering the landscape of FUTA is unprecedented in the annals of our institution.”

The student leaders listed some of the developmental and students’ oriented projects done by the present VC to include “Ongoing construction of a 200-room Female undergraduate hostel, Ongoing construction of a 200-room Male undergraduate hostel, Construction of Postgraduate hostel.

“It is very selfish, painful, disheartening, inhumane, unproductive and illegal for the various FUTA Staff Unions to agitate and request for the payment unlawful and unproductive allowances from the university.

The students therefore urged the “various FUTA Staff Union to reflect on the recent media campaign of President Muhammadu Buhari “Change Begins with me” in our daily lives by jettisoning their demand.”