FUOYESU SRC suspends Students’ Union president, three other executives

The Students Representatives Council of the Federal University Oye-Ekiti has suspended the Students’ Union President, Awodola Oluwaseun Samuel aka Unique, the Assistant General Secretary, Lasisi Ojo Samuel, the Welfare Director, Ayeni Damilola and the Social Director, Olugbede Promise, for contravening the FUOYE Student Union constitution.

This was announced in a memo signed by the Students Representative Council Speaker, Rt. Hon. Anifowose Temitope and other 3 officers.

According to the release, they were suspended through a resolution reached by a 2/3rd majority of voting members on the 17th of May 2019 with 46 honourable members in attendance.

According to the SRC’s memo, they were suspended on the basis of contravening the FUOYESU constitution for extra-budgetary spending and misappropriation of the union’s funds, against Article XXVIII Section (C) subsection (vii), the unconstitutional retention of the Union’s funds and gross misconduct against Article V Section 5, subsection (iv) of the FUOYESU constitution on the One Million, Eight Hundred and Eight Thousand Naira (N1,808,000) approved for the Freshers Night and income from the event.

The memo directed that affected executives “are kindly advised to submit all the properties of the union in their possession including their identity cards to the Students’ Affairs department and desist from parading themselves as members of the executive committee with immediate effect until the council sits to review her decision as stated in Article VIII Section (iii) of the FUOYESU constitution.”

Furthermore, it reads that the Vice President will act as the President, as stated in the constitution, “the General Secretary should take the sole responsibility of the secretariat while the committee of welfare and social should act in the stead of the social and welfare secretaries respectively.”

Speaking to the SRC Clerk, Hon. Babatunde Sunday, he alleged that the President and the affected executives have committed several impeachable offences varying from extra-budgetary spending, misappropriation of funds and gross misconduct, all in relation to the spending of N1.8million on Freshers Night.

“The executive in their own way have violated the constitution when it comes to financing, in the aspect of disbursement of money.”

“Constitutionally it’s not in the position of the President to disburse money, it is the duty of the treasury so that there is going to be a correlation between the treasury and financial secretary. Now that the money is coming from the President I don’t think there will be a tally.”

“There are other impeachable offences the house hasn’t touched. All our investigation is restricted to the N1.8million for now.”

Speaking on the suspension, the Speaker, Rt. Hon. Anifowose Temitope, said: “The suspension of the executives was not my suspension. I am just the speaker, I don’t have the right to vote.”

He added that there were 46 members in the house and only 5 voted against the suspension.

According to him, the suspended executives have been withholding sensitive documents that could aid their investigation and that was why someone from the house raised a motion for their suspension, to allow for the release of the documents and the motion was seconded.

He added that “if the investigation is concluded some of them might be impeached.”

SUG President reacts

Speaking to the Union of Campus Journalists FUOYE, the suspended Student Union President, Awodola Oluwaseun Samuel aka Unique, described the suspension as a rumour because he is yet to be served a letter in effect to this development.

“Actually [I have not been] informed in any form of [a] suspension and for now it is still a rumour. I don’t know about any suspension because I don’t have any memo pertaining to that effect.”

The Student Union Executive Council has however summoned a congress for May 20th, 2019 following the alleged “receipt of over 250 signatories as subjected to the Union’s constitution, Article XIII.”

The memo is to serve as the notification of the Congress was signed by the suspended President and AGS.

However, when one of the Spokespersons for the SRC, Hon. Oladotun Bankole was contacted, he nullified the validity of the Congress because due process was not followed.

“About the Congress, of course, being the Chairman of the Congress, the President can always summon a Congress but not without the approval of the House. It’s stated in the constitution in Article XIII, page 108 of the student handbook constitution, titled General Meeting of the Union,” he said.

“Article 8b says Congress shall be summoned by the Chairman on the approval of the Council.”

“The other part to it is that the General Secretary can summon a meeting on the directive of the President. According to this place, the President would have gotten approval from the House.”

When asked about the allegation by the President that he didn’t receive the letter, he blamed it on the late preparation of the letter on Friday evening and promised the letter will get to the appropriate quarters who have been copied as soon as possible.