Unbelievable!: University of Lagos Dons borrow to buy rice

 

“It is sad to write that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu is just raising the hope of Federal Universities Staff believing that his government would pay our four months withheld salaries and allowances; arrears of 25% salary increase of a year (January to December 2023; N35,000.00 fuel subsidy removal palliative arrears from February, March 2024 to date”

PEGASUS REPORTERS, LAGOS | SEPTEMBER 23, 2024

Professors, Doctors including the top officers amongst the non-teaching staff, bombarded their Cooperative offices at the HRDC Building, University of Lagos for a soft loan of sum of N35,000.00 (Thirty-Five Thousand naira) towards empowering them to buy a 5kg bag of rice, beans and “gari” (Ounje Eko.” Nkan nbe” (wonder shall never end)

You would recall that about three weeks ago, I wrote a write-up on OUNJE EKO (25% discounted prices on sale of some food stuffs for a period of about four weeks or thereabouts courtesy of Mr. Babajide Sanwo-Olu, the Governor of Lagos State. The program would have its third edition tomorrow, Friday, 20th of September 2024. It is sad to write that cheaper as the products are, majority of the University Staff do not have money on them to enjoying the said priviledges.

There is no reason for any of us to pretend that all are well when nothing is well. It might interest you to read that my humble self, Prince Oriwaye J. Adefolalu, heard about the N35,000.00 each that the Unique Cooperative CMS, UNILAG was giving out as a soft loan without interest to its members so that they would have money to buy “Ounje EKO” on Friday, 20th September, 2024.

I left my house, Selewu, Igbogbo at about 5:30 a.m, for UNILAG and, indeed, by 8:30 a.m., I was on campus. You may care to know how much I spent on transportation (to & fro). It was N5,200. I went to HRDC building, UNILAG, straight to put my name down, and when I asked the Cooperative staff the time that I would receive the alert, they said next week. “Next week, ke? was the word that jumped out of my mouth. I was told that my own would come out with second batch because the first batch ended yesterday, Wednesday, 18th of September, 2024 and that more than 300 (Three Hundred) staff enrolled for the said soft loan of N35,000. On the list, we have some professors, doctors, and top senior non-teaching staff. When a professor is seeking a N35,000.00 soft loan, the hardship is bitten hard on staff of a lesser cadre. And as Yoruba of good origin would say, ” ategun ti o ba d’amu Omo alalubosa, t’omo elelubo ti d’ofo.”

I begin to imagine the kind of jobs or lectures that a hungry person or lecturer would be able to do. In fact, it has been said several times that a hungry man is an angry man, so also is a hungry woman. ” Ebi ki w’onu ki oro mi’ran o wo.“.

If President Bola Ahmed Tinubu is not aware that the university staff are dying like chicken, let him come to the University of Lagos. The sick amongst the Federal Universities Staff do not have money to buy food, not to talk of drugs.

It is sad to write that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu is just raising the hope of Federal Universities Staff believing that his Government would pay our four months withheld salaries and allowances; arrears of 25% salary increase of a year (January to December, 2023; N35,000.00 fuel subsidy removal palliative arrears from February, March, 2024 to date. It is also sad that N70,000.00 minimum wage is still hanging without implementation while the prices of foods and other items are increasing every day without control.

Today, I wept profusely in my office when I saw some of our colleagues who retired from the service of the University two years ago, looking retched and claiming that they have not received their gratuities from their PFA and the information they received from their PFA was that Government had not released money to them. ” Ki lo de? What kind of country is ours? What are our offences? ” Won sa ni ki a ma gbadura. A gbadura- gbadura ito gbe be ni Olorun ko k’oro.” Literally meaning, ” we were asked to be praying. We pray to pray to an extent that our saliva became dry up, whereas God is not a bitter God but a merciful God.” Where have we gotten it wrong for God sake? It seems as if the majority of our leaders at different levels of governments are brevet of ideas or better say they are just gambling. Very very unfortunate and sad.

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, please pay us our various entitlements so that we can breathe in some fresh air, for the environment is suffocating.

Once again, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, pay us our various entitlements without further delay to avert labour unrest.

NIGERIA, WE HAIL THEE.

Prince Oriwaye J. Adefolalu, mpa, mnim, is a former Chairman of Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities, SSANU, University of Lagos (2003-2009).

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Editor’s Titbits: GMO Feeds, And the Plots Continue!

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