ExpdonaLoaded.blogspot.com (+2348097205188): Expdonaloaded News; LASU writes Ambode, lists ways out of crisis

Friday 12 June 2015

Expdonaloaded News; LASU writes Ambode, lists ways out of crisis

Management of Lagos State University has briefed the state Governor, Akinwunmi Ambode, on the crisis rocking the institution, suggesting ways out of the logjam.

The university, it was gathered, communicated the governor through a letter dated June 1. The letter, Expdonaloaded blog learnt, was in response to a May 25 letter from the state government with reference SAE/HED/S.35/Vol.I/133 and addressed to the Vice Chancellor, Professor John Obafunwa.
The letter from the government reportedly requested a “ministerial briefing/report for the newly sworn-in administration” on the activities, achievements, challenges as well as the causes and efforts made to resolve the crisis between the unions and the management of the university.
Sources told Expdonaloaded blog that the government, upon receipt of the briefing, invited the management and leaders of unions of the university to a meeting with the Deputy Governor, Dr. Oluranti Adebule.
Government’s position on the situation at the university, it was gathered, would be made public soon.
In the letter, which also listed the achievements of the Obafunwa administration, Expdonaloaded blog learnt, the vice chancellor traced the genesis of the crisis to the inability to pay members of the unions the arrears of their salary increase his administration inherited and non-promotion of some teaching and non-teaching staff.
The vice chancellor was also said to have given details of efforts made by different stakeholders, including traditional rulers in the state and the Governing Council of LASU, to resolve the crisis to no avail.
The briefing also complained about the dwindling internally generated revenue of the institution, which it attributed to the state government’s stoppage of the university’s external system (part-time studies) and the reversal of the newly-introduced fees to the old regime.
The management, it was gathered, blamed its inability to meet its financial obligations to members of the unions on the institution’s dwindling revenue base.
Contacted, Professor Obafunwa refused to confirm the exchange of letters between the government and management of LASU.
In a related development, Lagos State government has approved the release of N162.5 million for payment of the outstanding excess school fees to students of the university, following the reversal of the increment of tuition by the administration of former Governor Babatunde Fashola (SAN).