ASUU OAU honours retired members with awards

The Obafemi Awolowo University, (OAU) Ile-Ife, Osun State chapter of the Academic Staff Union of Universities has honoured its members who retired between 2017 and 2019 with awards at a special congress.

The special congress was held at the Awovarsity Cooperative Hall of the institution on Wednesday last week.

While appreciating the retirees for their meritorious service during their productive years toward the development of the institution, the chairman of the ASUU OAU, Dr Adeola Egbedokun, said: “You have contributed immensely to the growth and development of our great union.

“Your sacrifices have sustained us in this journey; you will always be remembered for your efforts when ASUU OAU was evolving. Despite the open confrontations and intimidations from the principalities of our university, you stood your ground and fought for the cause of the common man.”

Egbedokun also commended them for defending and protecting the interest of academics and the university system, noting also that members of the union would always remember them for their mentorship, meticulous teachings and painstaking supervision.

The national vice-president, ASUU, Professor Victor Osodeke, who was the guest lecturer at the event, while speaking on the title of the lecture at the congress, ‘Life as Retired Academics – Expectations of the Union’, described the retirement days of an academic as a period to reflect on the contribution to knowledge and human development.

He, however, stated that the present situation in the country had made it impossible for academics to enjoy full retirement.

“Today, many retired academics are still involved in adjunct, part-time and contract appointments in both public and private universities.

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“Some, especially retired professors, move around the political circle in order to get one form of appointment or the other. These they do in order to raise extra fund to cope with the poor pension. This is the life of a retired Nigerian academic,” Professor Osodeke said.

He made a case for the policy of full payment on retirement to be extended the senior lecturer cadre, while the union should struggle for the implementation of gratuity payment by government to all categories of academics on retirement.

Osodeke commended the OAU branch of ASUU for not only celebrating the retired colleagues, but also for providing a forum for discussing the very important issue of retirement and pension.

In his remarks, the chairman of the occasion, Professor Amos Eniola Akingbohungbe, frowned on the politicisation of universities in Nigeria, admitting that “it is a serious problem.”

He noted that if infrastructure were improved and academic structures were properly set up, all the problems facing public universities would disappear.

The representative of the vice chancellor of the institution, Professor Eyitope Ogunbodede, at the special congress was the university librarian, Dr Femi Oguntuase, who encouraged the union not to relent on the battle to position the country in an enviable position among the comity of nations.

The union presented the retirees with awards for their meritorious service, both at the union and university levels.