Students want to fund their school, since government has failed

The students of Ladoke Akintola University of Technology (LAUTECH) want to fund their schools wage bill, since government has failed to do so.

The university has been closed for 8 months straight because of outstanding payments to staff totalling about N7billion.

While the outstanding bill totals about 7 billion, a fundraising campaign by the school's Alumni plans to raise a total of 1 billion naira over the next three months. By June 14, when the campaign was only two days old, over 1.2 million naira.

And now, the Ooni of Ife thinks what they are doing is a great idea and he has decided to pledge a sum of N500,000

The initiator of this project and a former President of the University's Student Union, Bayo Adeyinka, presented the long and short term objectives to the Ooni of Ife, Oba Adeyeye Ogunwusi.

The Ooni of Ife, Oba Adeyeye Ogunwusi, on Monday pledged to support the #FundLAUTECH initiative with N500,000.

The monarch made the pledge when the #FundLAUTECH team, a group of alumni members of the troubled institution, paid a courtesy call on him at his palace in Ile-Ife, Osun State.

Led by the initiator of the project and a former president of the university’s Student Union, Bayo Adeyinka, the team presented an elaborate proposal on the #FundLAUTECH initiative to the monarch and highlighted the short and long term objectives of the initiative.

Mr. Adeyinka said on Monday night that the #FundLAUTECH project team presented three requests, which were welcomed by the monarch.

He said the team was there “to seek royal endorsement for the initiative, to seek His Imperial Majesty’s intervention in the ongoing crisis in LAUTECH (and) to seek his consent as the Chairman of the Governing Board of the #FundLAUTECH initiative.”

According to Mr. Adeyinka, the Ooni who was impressed by the initiative, pledged a donation of N500,000 and issued a cheque of N250,000 to the team.

He said:

“His Imperial Majesty who was visibly impressed by the presentation pledged a donation of N500,000 (Five Hundred Thousand Naira Only) to the project and issued a cheque of N250,000 to affirm his commitment.”

“This was sequel to the information provided on the long term objectives of the initiative and the potential impact on the University.

“His Imperial Majesty further assured the team that he was in consultations with the Visitors to LAUTECH and assured that the current impasse would soon be a thing of the past.”

Mr. Adeyinka also explained that the team’s proposal that the monarch superintendent the board governing the project, as chairman, equally received approval.

“We are grateful for this royal endorsement and donation and we will strive to justify the trust reposed in us,”