John Adams, Minna
The crisis rocking the Scientific Equipment Development Institute (SEDI) Minna, Niger state is far from being over as the staff union has again issued a stem warning that it will resist any attempt by the government to reappoint the Managing Director of the Institute, Professor Mohammed Baba Ndaliman for second term in office.
Professor Ndaliman had in May last year completed his first term of four years in office and Dr. Abdullahi Saba, a staff of the Institute appointed as the Acting Managing Director of the science equipment center.
But the Institute’s Staff Unions under the aegies of the Joint Research and Allied Institutions Sector Unions (JORAISU) has threatened that it will “deploy all the necessary arsenal within the legal and industrial ambit of the law to resist any attempts at the imposition in any guise that will undermine research and development as well as the fresh air of peace that the institute is currently enjoying”.
The Union in a letter; “rejection of the renewal of tenure of Professor Mohammed Baba Ndaliman as the managing director/chief executive of Scientific Equipment Development Institute, Minna Niger state for the second term in office”, a copy which was made available to our correspondent in Minna on Tuesday, alleged that the four years of Professor Ndaliman at the helm of affairs was a disaster as it brought serious set back to the institute.
The Union in the letter jointly signed by Engineer Chinedu Ugwu Lawrence, Chairman ASURI, SEDI Minna and Comrade Ahmed A. Danladi Chairman NASU SEDI Minna claimed that the assessment of Professor Ndaliman by both internal and external assessors as was the tradition for reappointment of a Managing Director, “have shown gross degree of failure and non performance”.
The Unions pointed out that its decision to issue further warning on the reappointment of Ndaliman was informed by “recent information to us that the former Managing Director is yet to abandon his treacherous vanity desire/quest to come back to SEDI Minna.
“Therefore this reminder and call is to convey to the NASENI Management and our relevant stakeholders above as well as members of the public our earlier affirmation and unwavering stands on no renewal of tenure for Professor Mohammed Baba Ndaliman”.
They also alleged that activities in the Institute under Ndaliman’s watch in the last four years have been run aground, and at its lowest ebb, resulting in “people receiving salaries without doing anything”.
According to the Union, “the institute before Ndaliman was producing and supplying scientific and mathematics kits to primary, Junior Secondary schools in the country but presently the country is importing these equipment. What the institute could ordinary produce are now being procured outside the country”.
In addition, the unions further alleged that staff welfare had been taken for granted resulting in lack of motivation, threatening that “we will shutdown the institute if he is imposed on the institute”.
“The Congress has therefore passed a vote of no confidence on Ndaliman for his abysmal performance.
“Any attempt to impose the former Managing Director on the Institute will lead to us shutting down the institute to show that research institutes cannot be taken for granted”, the Union declared.
Any attempts to get the reactions of the embattled Managing Director could not yield any result as he was not picking his cell phone after several calls put across to him.”