LAUTECH debunks alleged illegal hiring, confirmation of medical workers

• Ogun House moves to end medics’ strike
• Alumni fault renaming of Osun varsity
The Joint Health Sector Union (JOHESU) chapter of Ladoke Akintola has faulted the Oyo State government over claims that some medical workers were illegally appointed and confirmed.

The union, in a statement yesterday by its chairman, Comrade Abiodun Afolabi and Secretary, Victoria Ayano, urged the state government to act with ‘’caution and human eye,’’ alleging that the termination plan had been in the offing for over four

Our attention has been drawn to the statement made by the Director, Bureau of Communication and Strategy, Office of the Governor of Osun State, Semiu Okanlawon as published by the Nation and Punch Newspaper dated 11th and 12th March respectively.

“While we like to inform the general public that Okanlawon’s statement is mere fallacy, we hereby want to use this medium to provide the public with the following clarifications.

That apart from the fact that the employment of these staff were carried out by the hospital’s Chief Medical Director who is an appointee of the government, acting for, accountable and responsible to the government; vacancies for the appointments were advertised in The Nation newspaper of Monday 20th February, 2012 and employment forms were sold to the applicants at the rate of five thousand naira each’’

“It was in response to the advertisement that the staff applied, were interviewed and validly recruited; hence this recruitment cannot be described as illegal,” the union contended.

In a related development, the Ogun State House of Assembly is making forts to getting the state’s striking workforce to resume work.

The eight-day strike has paralysed government activities in the state.The aggrieved workers are insisting that unless government fulfils an agreement it signed with them to refund some deductions from their monthly salaries, they would not resume work.

The leadership of the 26-member House met with the worker’s union in Abeokuta at the weekend to convince to dissuade them while negotiation remains ongoing.

Chairman state’s chapter of the Joint National Negotiating Council (JNC), Comrade Abiodun Olakanmi, remained defiant despite Speaker’s Suraju Ishola Adekunbi’s plea to halt the industrial action.

The legislative leader, however, blamed the ugly development on the global economic downturn, saying that the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) in the state “is a labour-friendly one.”

Also, the Nigerian Medical Association (NMA) in South West geo-political has flayed Governor Aregbesola of Osun State for the protracted strike of their colleagues, questioning the proprietary of the bail-out fund.

In a statement by the chairman of Ondo State NMA, Dr. Bamidele Betiku, it said: “NMA Ondo State and indeed the entire body of doctors in the South West are particularly troubled by seemingly deliberate attempts of the governor of the State of Osun to escalate tension in the state by his disposition and utterances.”

Meanwhile, the alumni of Osun State University (UNIOSIN) have objected the renaming of the institution after the late Chief Bola Ige by the state governor, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola.

The alma mater is now known as Bola Ige University (BIU).To show their seriousness, the old boys had threatened to suit the governor over the development.

Aregbesola, had last week during the grand finale of the fourth and fifth convocations of the university, renamed all tertiary institutions in the state, including UNIOSUN and some five other campuses of the university after some notable indigenes of the state.

But in a statement yesterday, the alumni said they rejected the exercise and threatened legal action. In the statement, signed by the President and Secretary-General, Oluwatosin Abikanlu and Otunde Adebowale respectively, the alumni said they were resisting the move “because Chief Bola Ige has nothing to do with the establishment of the university aside being a political leader in the state before he died in December 2001.”
They added that the renaming would make the acronym conflict with Benson Idahosa University (BIU) in Edo State.