"I am financially incapacitated to tackle the challenges of funding LAUTECH"- Aregbesola

Prior to the recent protest by the students of Ladoke Akuntola University of Technology(LAUTECH), Ogbomoso, the Osun state governor, Mr Rauf Aregbesola made it known on Friday night that, his administration was financially incapacitated to handle the challenges of funding bedevilling the institution.

He described baseless and untrue
insinuation in some quarters that he was not
interested and committed to the survival and
effective funding of the university, which is
jointly owned by  the Oyo and Osun State.

Report shows that, thousands of students of the said institution had on Wednesday and Thursday arrived at Osogbo, the Osun State capital in a mass demonstration to condemn what they refer to as 'Indifferent Posture of Aregbesola to the crisis facing their school', which in turn result to the prolonged strike as lecturers are due for payment of salaries.

The student's protest resulted into a complete shut down of commercial and social activities in Osogbo, as vehicular movements were unable to move for almost eight hours, whereby people have to trek to get to their destinations.

Further more, during media night out in the Government House, at Oke Fia, Osogbo, as part of the activities to commemorate his 60th birthday, Aregbesola made it known to journalists saying:  

“this is not a matter of not
having interest in LAUTECH. With the
economic realities on ground, I cannot
continue with the pattern of funding the
school because we are financially
incapacitated”.
“I am incapable. The funds are not just
there. Though I still make contributions and
my deputy governor is here to testify that I
still sign cheques to make payment every
month to LAUTECH. It is small. It is not a
matter of interest, but incapacity. The
failure of the management to live within its
means is another issue”.
“We stop giving financial support to Osun
State University (UNIOSUN), an institution
with about 12,000 student population about
three years ago and the university is still
running on its own till today. Population of
LAUTECH is about 33,000 and the difference
between the tuition fees being paid by
LAUTECH and UNIOSUN is not much".

Aregbesola however said that, a private audit firm had
been commissioned by both Oyo and Osun
to carry out total audit of staff strength,
income and expenditure of the school,
coupled with how revenue accruable to the
institution was being used.

In conclusion, he assured the students that the crisis would soon be over, further advising
the students to be calm and law abiding, saying their fears and worries would soon come to an end.