Protest Rocks OAUTH Over 2,000 Sacked Workers

Some recently recruited workers at the Obafemi Awolowo University Teaching Hospital, Ile-Ife, Osun State, on Thursday, staged a peaceful protest, as a result of the decision of the management to lay them off.

The protesters, who carried placards with the various inscriptions such as, ‘Say no to injustice,’ ‘Okeniyi must go, our salary must be paid,’ ‘Our 14-month salary or nothing else,’ ‘Pay our salary. OAUTHC,’ demanded compensation, having worked for about 14 months before they were disengaged.

The management of the teaching hospital had, in a memo issued January 31, 2024 and by the acting Director of Administration, O. Omonije, retained 68 and laid off about 2,000 staff recruited through alleged job racketeering that occurred in the hospital from early 2022 to year 2023.

The memo stated that the Office of the Head of Service of the Federation approved recruitment of only 450 worker before the racketeering took place.

It listed 68 personnel as those that would be part of the fresh recruitment in compliance with the approval given by the Office of the Head of Service, saying all those recruited outside the approval must stop parading themselves as staff of the hospital.

Displeased with the decision to lay them off, the affected workers stormed the entrance to the hospital in their large numbers. They demanded to be paid for the 14 months that they had worked.