Says dark era of percentage salary is gone
Ondo State Governor, Lucky Aiyedatiwa, at the weekend, said that the era of percentage salary payment in the state had come to an end, assuring that his administration is committed to prompt and full salary payment across all state-owned tertiary institutions.
Aiyedatiwa stated this while announcing the immediate clearance of outstanding salary arrears owed to staff of Rufus Giwa Polytechnic, Owo (RUGIPO), during the institution’s combined 12th–23rd convocation ceremony, the first to be held after 12 years.
The governor, while declaring the period of percentage salary as a dark and painful chapter in the history of the institution and the state workforce, maintained that his administration would never allow such hardship to resurface.
He stated that the arrears, which had been outstanding for months prior to his intervention, were settled to allow workers to concentrate on their academic duties without interruption.
Aiyedatiwa further revealed that three separate special intervention funds had been released earlier to reduce the backlog, before the government finally offset the remaining balance.
He, however, explained that the polytechnic’s prolonged financial challenges had crippled academic activities and eroded the confidence of both staff members and students, but gave the assurance that the reforms being implemented would ensure that such a situation never repeats itself.
He commended the staff unions of the polytechnic for showing restraint and choosing dialogue during turbulent times, stating that their maturity and patriotism provided the government with room to find sustainable solutions to the crisis.
In the same vein, he confirmed the full reopening of the polytechnic’s staff school, which had been shut for years, and promised immediate renovation of the facility and provision of a school bus to support teaching and learning.
On his part, the institution’s Acting Rector, Olorunwa Adegun, hailed Aiyedatiwa for rescuing the institution from what he called a bottomless pit of hopelessness, stressing that the governor’s intervention has restored life to the polytechnic and rekindled staff morale.
Adegun described the combined convocation as a symbol of recovery after 12 years, praising members of staff, unions, and alumni for their support toward rebuilding the polytechnic.
