The management of Federal University of Technology, Akure and three staff unions in the institution are engaged in a war of words over the allegation of corruption levied against the institution’s Vice Chancellor, Prof. Biyi Daramola, and the Governing Council.
The unions are the Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities, National Association of Academic Technicians and Non-Academic Staff Union.
The Chairman of SSANU, Dele Durojaiye, told the News Agency of Nigeria on Tuesday in Akure that the union had written a petition against the university management following an audit report which allegedly indicted Daramola and the governing council.
The vice chancellor, however, dismissed the allegations against him as “concocted lies stemming from ignorance’’ on the part of the union leaders.
But Durojaiye, who doubles as the Chairman of the Joint Action Committee, an umbrella body of the unions, insisted that the report alleged “monumental fraud’’.
The union leader alleged that though the report covered only 2015, the vice chancellor had been linked to acts of corruption since 2012 when he came into office.
Durojaiye accused the vice chancellor of living in government quarters and yet had been drawing house allowances.
He also claimed that the union had evidence that the vice chancellor had been using public funds to finance private expenses.
Durojaiye further accused the vice chancellor of “ paying N250,000 every month to faceless friends of the university, aside the fact that he gives out spurious allowances to himself and members of the governing council’’.
Durojaiye said: “About three weeks ago, under the flimsy excuse that he was going on holiday, the vice chancellor drew N24 million from Stanbic IBTC FUTA account which is not known to TSA.
“All these were packaged with evidence and sent to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission and the Presidential Anti-Corruption Committee.”
Ejiro Omoraka, the Chairman of NAT in the institution, said that the unions had been embarking on peaceful protests to demand the removal of Daramola and dissolution of the governing council.
He claimed that when all attempts by the institution’s management to get the protesting workers arrested failed, it had the university gates, which the unions had put under lock and key, removed.
Omoraka said: “They thought this will deter us from our picketing, but we are determined to continue with it until the vice chancellor is removed and the council dissolved.”
Similarly, Bayo Aladerotohun, the Chairman of the institution’s NASU, said his members would continue to pursue the allegation of corruption levelled against the vice chancellor and the Dr Muhammed Shata-led governing council.
According to Aladerotohun, the council is collecting illegal allowances from the vice chancellor and would not be able to perform its duty.
Aladerotohun said: “We have come to the conclusion that the vice chancellor be relieved of his position and the council dissolved with immediate effect.
“We also demand that an audit team be sent by the Federal Government to probe the accounts of the university from Year 2012 to date.”
The union leaders also presented a copy of the audit query issued to the university by the Office of the Auditor-General of the Federation to support the allegations.
But reacting on behalf of the university’s management, the vice chancellor attributed part of the controversy to the audit team that audited the institution’s account.
He insisted that the audit team was only used to ministries and departments but new to university audit.
Citing some sections of the University (Miscellaneous Provisions) (Amendment ) Act 2003.
Daramola disclosed: “They don’t know that the university has financial autonomy to an extent. Most of the issues raised cannot stand.
“For example, they said there that there was an imprest in the Vice Chancellor’s Lodge and another imprest in the Vice Chancellor’s office.
“The VC Lodge is an official residence. That is not my house. I receive official visitors there.
“The cook and security guards live and eat there. Is that supposed to come from my salary?
“I have my own house where I pay electricity bills and maintain the premises.
“There is a Federal Government gazette where my housing allowance is spelt out. If I don’t collect my housing allowance, what will I use to maintain my house?
“Yet the memorandum of appointment says I must live in the official quarters because they don’t expect me to receive the schools’ visitors in my personal house.
“If I was living in my personal house and collecting imprest for the VC Lodge, then it becomes a problem.”
Quoting from his Memorandum of Appointment as vice-chancellor, Daramola explained that he was entitled to one month vacation abroad with four children and a wife every two years at the university’s expense.
According to him, it was the vacation bonus comprising of air flight tickets and estacode paid into his salary account domiciled at Stanbic IBTC that he used for his vacation.
He said: “They say that I run FUTA accounts not known to TSA. Well, to the best of my knowledge, all FUTA accounts are with TSA, including the IBTC account.
“But the IBTC account where I drew money for my holiday expenses is my personal salary account.”
He described the allegation that he “ gives money and gifts to faceless friends of the university’’ as laughable, saying such money and gifts were part of the corporate social responsibilities of the school.
The vice chancellor explained that it was only during festivals such as Christmas and Eid-el-Kabir that the school gives out gifts to people who had been assisting the school in its development drive.
Daramola said: “Some of these people have donated buildings or other infrastructure worth millions of naira to the school.
“We give them give gifts during festive periods to encourage them to do more for us.”
He also said there was nothing wrong in supporting the Pro-Chancellor of the school in paying the medical bills of his son and making donation of some money during the wedding of his daughter.
The vice chancellor said that the school had supported many members of staff either during the wedding of their children or payment of their medical bills in the past and there was no complaint.
He also said: “As far as I am concerned, the Pro-Chancellor is part of the university and he deserves assistance from us.
“All these I have explained to the EFCC and we are waiting for the body to conclude its investigations.
“What is clear is that the EFCC cannot, on the strength of mere allegations, send me to jail.
“They will do their work in line with the laws of the land.”
The vice chancellor called on the unions to toe the line of civility and go back to work pending the conclusion of investigation of the EFCC.
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