The Edo State governor, Mr. Godwin Obaseki, has doused the brewing tension in the State-owned Ambrose Alli University (AAU) Ekpoma, directing the management of the institution to immediately reverse and retrieve all recent illegal disengagement letters issued to staff of the institution.
The development follows the appearance of a sack letter on social media on Tuesday, which announced the sack of 22 staff of the institution.
The chairman of the local chapter of Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) in the institution, Dr Cyril Onogbosele, in a reaction on Tuesday had alleged that the move was part of attempts to suppress the staff from demanding what was due to them.
He stated that those who were not due for retirement were included in the list, wondering where was that done in a workplace.
But, the State governor insisted that the sack notices said to have been issued earlier to some staff of the university were illegal, null and void.
The governor’s directive was contained in a statement issued Wednesday by his Special Adviser on Media Project, Crusoe Osagie, expressing the government’s commitment to staff welfare.
“The management is to retrieve any such illegal letters if they were ever issued and reinstate the affected staff.
“The governor has ordered an in-depth investigation into what led to the sporadic issuance of illegal sack letters and assured that all found culpable will be brought to book.
“The government reiterates its commitment to the welfare of staff and is working to address all lingering issues affecting workers at the state-owned institution,” he stated.
Also the Public Relations Officer of the AAU, Ekpoma, Lawrence Isiraojie, said no worker has been sacked as been circulated on the social media.
“The information circulating around, Ambrose Alli University has not sacked those workers they have listed on the paper circulating round the social media.
“It is just that a staff (member) of the Department of Economics was disengaged last Friday and another Professor from the Department of Modern Languages was retired.
“Those are only the two individuals that were affected last week Friday. I am currently still in the office; we have not sacked anybody and those briefing they are giving is not a true reflection in Ambrose Alli University,” Isiraojie stated.
