10 AAU lecturers die over unpaid salaries

By Jethro Ibileke

Chairman of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), Ambrose Alli University chapter, Cyril Onogbosele, has said that 10 of their members have lost their lives as a result of the denial of their salaries by the University management, since the commencement of strike over unpaid salary arrears.

Onogbosele made the revelation on Wednesday when the National President of the Union, Prof. Emmanuel Osodeke, led other national delegates in a solidarity protest to the University over their unpaid salaries and other sundry issues in the institution.

According to him, “Since this strike started, we have lost 10 lecturers. Workers have been denied their salaries for 19 months now. Many of us are dying as a result of that. We cannot meet our financial obligations to our families because of unpaid salaries.”

He added that the protest was to further draw the attention of the people of the State to the action of the Governor, Mr. Godwin Obaseki, and to prevail on him to address the issues.

In his remark, the National President of the Union, Prof. Emmanuel Osodeke, said the national body was in Ekpoma in solidarity with the University’s chapter of ASUU over the banning of union activities on campus by Governor Obaseki.