Staffers of Moshood Abiola Polytechnic, MAPOLY, Abeokuta, have cried out saying their future is being jeopardized with the manner the Institution is being administered.

The workers have however called on the government of Ogun State to take over the running of the school, following the failure of the management of the school to meet up with its mandate.

The workers during a protest on Wednesday, over the non-implementation of the minimum wage, non-payment of three months’ salary, no promotion since 2019 and unpaid 55 months pension arrears, said they don’t have future with MAPOLY.

Armed with placards with different inscriptions such as 'Enough of suffering and smiling', 'implementation of minimum wage', 'pay our pension deduction (55 months)', 'we want new management', 'release our promotion as and when due', 'please pay our salaries', etc, the protesters, who had earlier made their way to the administrative block, blocked the entrance to the school.

Speaking with journalists during the protest, the Chairman of Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Polytechnics, SSANIP, MAPOLY chapter, Dada Olalekan, said the workers have no future with MAPOLY with the manner with which it is being administered.

Olalekan said the state government should borrow a leaf from the Oyo, Lagos and Osun State governments by taking over the account of the school and pay directly from the government covers.

Olalekan said, “The reason we are here is to demand for our entitlements. The management of MAPOLY is owing us three months salary from October 2022; all other institutions and government agencies are collecting minimum wage, MAPOLY has refused to implement the minimum wage; the management is owing us 55 months pension arrears. As I speak, nobody has a pension future here. If anybody retires tomorrow, there’s no future or pension for that person.

“The last promotion that was done in MAPOLY was in 2019; 2020 t0 2022 promotions are still in arrears, the appointment promotion has not been done since 2019, colleagues in other institution have overtaken us because of promotion and appointment.

“The government should take account of MAPOLY and start to pay us as it is being done in all other states like Oyo State. Oyo State has more higher institutions and they pay all their salaries before 25^th of every month 100%.”

Kolawole Sopade, the Chairman, Non-Academic Staff Union, NASU, MAPOLY branch, while corroborating his colleague in SSANIP said MAPOLY is being run like a private institution where only source of revenue is school fees.

Sopade lamented that MAPOLY has no means of survival apart from the inadequate school fees, adding that payment of salaries remain the duty of the government.

He further lamented that the state government has refused to pay subvention to the school, revealing that a N300m COVId-19 bail out given to the school was later converted to loan.

“The salary we are talking about now, if we collect it, there is no assurance that we will collect another salary in three months based on the JAMB and NBTE quota they gave to us.

“If we enroll students now, with limited quota they gave to us, and the limited school fees they are going to pay, there is no means of survival after March or April, that is why we are calling on government to come to our aide.

“After the school fees are paid and the management used it to pay salary at once, there nothing to rely on, the government should come and take over the polytechnic and run it as a state-owned institution, this is not a private polytechnic, the government should come and take over the account of the polytechnic and run it properly.

“There was a time government was giving us subvention, along the line, when we had little challenges, the government gave us N300m bail out during COVID-19, we thought, it was a COVID effect, we later had it that it was a loan and they used our subvention to offset it, and we don’t have any subvention again and no means of survival except school fees. It is only private institutions that are run this way. Let’s emulate Seyi Makinde who pays all the institutions and collect their IGR.”