Nigerian professors earn gardener’s 3-hour pay – Abimbola ex OAU VC

…Slams FG implicit mediocre salaries of lecturers

By Adesina Wahab

Former Vice-Chancellor of Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile Ife, Prof Wande Abimbola, has slammed the national authorities for the mediocre renumeration of assemblage lecturers, saying without immoderate important betterment successful the assemblage system, it faces imminent collapse.

Abimbola, who is present based successful the United States, besides took a swipe astatine the mediocre salaries of lecturers, saying what a prof earns monthly is conscionable astir what a gardener earns successful 3 hours successful the United States.

He has truthful called connected the FG to urgently instrumentality a bail-out for those moving successful the world assemblage successful bid to revive the prime of education.

Prof Abimbola spoke arsenic impermanent connected the monthly interrogation discourse, Boiling Point Arena, hosted by a media nonrecreational and nationalist relations strategist, Dr Ayo Arowojolu.

The taxable of sermon was: “Nigerian Universities: Tower of Crises, Citadel of  Missed Opportunities. Can the Lost Glory beryllium Reclaimed?”

The programme, chaired by a frontline monarch, the Olowu of Owu, Oba Prof Saka Matemilola, was transmitted via Zoom and broadcast unrecorded connected six vigor stations, WASH FM, Sweet FM, Roots FM, Eri-mbe FM, Women Radio and Kruzz FM arsenic good arsenic a cablegram television, NSTV connected Gotv Channel.

The erstwhile VC lamented that universities are experiencing the worst of clip with professors earning scandalous monthly take-home wage which is equivalent to what his ain gardener takes for a three-hour occupation of cutting grasses and trimming flowers successful his residence successful America.

Hear him: “A assemblage strategy is an important portion of the cloth of immoderate nation. As astatine 1989 erstwhile I near arsenic Vice-Chancellor astatine the University of Ife, present Obafemi Awolowo University, our institutions were inactive astatine their highest of quality. However, wrong 5 years oregon little than 10 years aft my exit from the presumption of VC, I visited the University and astir cried due to the fact that of what I saw, the level of decadence. It has been getting worse since then.

“The astir important happening astir assemblage is funding. We request to inquire our governments, some astatine the national and authorities levels, wherefore they person been aloof and looking connected until things got this bad. The national and authorities governments don’t truly care. Why are they looking connected arsenic if they are not concerned?

“The assemblage strategy is getting worse and worse successful each aspect. I don’t adjacent cognize however the module and unit of the Nigerian universities person been capable to proceed to past connected the pittance they instrumentality arsenic salaries.

“Recently, astir 2 years ago,  I went backmost to the assemblage wherever I was the VC. I visited my department, and  I was told that a afloat prof earns astir N500,000 monthly. When we converted the amount,  this is astir equivalent to the $300 academics elsewhere successful the United States volition usage to instrumentality attraction of his plot wrong conscionable 3 hours.

“So,  if these governments are not funny successful supporting the universities,  they should upwind them up.  It’s a large shame to the Nigerian Government. When I went to Ile-Ife campus, the lawns wherever children utilized to play had been overtaken. It’s a shame.

“The worst portion of it is that they are inactive establishing much universities. Everywhere you look, there’s a assemblage of this and that. And wherefore are they establishing much and much universities erstwhile the ones that beryllium are not catered for? Why are they not backing existing universities?

“I deliberation the champion happening that we tin bash present is for the Federal Government to urgently acceptable up a Commission of Inquiry connected what we tin truly bash to salvage the strategy and marque things better. I deliberation we person reached a signifier wherever we request recommendations, which hopefully the radical successful complaint volition look astatine and usage to marque things better.”

Prof. Abimbola, an internationally acclaimed student and erstwhile Senate Majority Leader, lectures successful immoderate large universities successful the United States, adjacent astatine his contiguous property of 92.

Prof Abimbola, who is besides an Ifa Priest and Babalawo, lamented that Nigerian Universities which utilized to beryllium successful the apical 500 champion universities ranking successful the satellite and among the archetypal 11 successful Africa are present taking backmost spot positions successful the apical 1000 categories.

He continued:  “I americium definite that we tin bash amended arsenic a nation. Maybe it’s a deficiency of knowing arsenic to what a assemblage is expected to be, oregon the radical in...