Strike paralyses academic activities at Federal College of Agriculture, Ibadan

Academic activities were on Tuesday paralysed at the Federal College of Agriculture (FCA), Ibadan as some members of staff embarked on a protest demanding reinstatement of four of their suspended colleagues.

Newsverge reports that the institute’s major gates were locked, hindering workers, students and members of the public from entering the college.

Some staff were seen at the gates of the college displaying placards some of which read: ‘Adelekan must go”, “Who is more superior, Minister or Adelekan”.

Another placard read, “Provost says no to honorable minister’s directive,” among others.

The Chairman of the group, Mr Olufemi Jokanola, told journalists that the Provost of the College, Dr Babajide Adelekan, refused to implement the directive of the Minister for Agriculture, Chief Audu Ogbe on the affected staff.

He further said that the instruction of Ogbe was that Adelekan should reinstate the suspended staff.

“The Provost suspended four members: Olufemi Jokanola, Oluade Eyitayo, Awogbade Adeyemi and Adekunle Adenike since Aug.15, 2016 because they joined the Academic Staff Union of Polytechnics (ASUP).

“We were suspended without pay and demanded reinstatement; we demand immediate removal of Adelekan and immediate administrative auditing of the college.

“No staff should be denied participating in the promotion except those with disciplinary case against them.

“Let all our outstanding salaries, promotion arrears, conference allowances, among others be paid, if not, the gate will remain closed, everything is at standstill at the college,” he said.

However, reacting to the allegations, Adelekan said, ‘We don’t have any instruction from the minister to reinstate the suspended staff.”

The provost urged the staff to go to Abuja to straighten the issues involved.

“They should stop disturbing other people from carrying out their legitimate activities.

“The Agricultural Research Council of Nigeria (ARCN) insists that Academic Staff Union of Polytechnics (ASUP) must not operate in all Federal Colleges of Agriculture in Nigeria.

“But these four staff maintained that they must join ASUP, causing problems and their suspension was a directive from the Minister of Agriculture, Ogbeh, not from us.

“That is the instruction we have, we don’t have anything contrary”.