Aiyedatiwa Ends Percentage Salary Era, Clears Arrears at RUGIPO
…Governor pledges to sustain education reforms, upgrade institution to university status
25ft October, 2025
The Ondo State Governor, Dr. Lucky Orimisan Aiyedatiwa, has brought relief to workers of Rufus Giwa Polytechnic, Owo, by clearing the backlog of salary arrears owed them for over a decade, signaling a decisive end to the era of percentage salary payments in the state’s tertiary institutions.
Governor Aiyedatiwa made the announcement on Saturday, October 25, 2025, during the combined 12th–23rd convocation ceremony of the institution, where he revealed that his administration had paid 10 out of the 13 months’ salary arrears inherited from previous administrations and approved immediate payment of the remaining three months.
Describing the percentage salary regime as “a dark and painful chapter” in the state’s history, Aiyedatiwa assured that his government would sustain full and prompt salary payments across all state-owned tertiary institutions.
> “Realising that no meaningful teaching and learning could take place where workers are owed humongous salaries, our administration took decisive steps to address the challenge,” the governor said. “Today, Rufus Giwa Polytechnic pays full salaries to its workers.”
He explained that the state had released Special Intervention Funds in three tranches to clear the arrears and also approved an upward review of the monthly subvention to the polytechnic effective from January 2024.
The governor commended the patience of staff and students during the period of hardship, lauding the workers’ unions for choosing dialogue over industrial action. He also assured that the government was reviewing reported cases of administrative injustices to ensure fairness and equity.
Reaffirming his commitment to education reform, Aiyedatiwa said his administration was working towards upgrading Rufus Giwa Polytechnic to a University of Agriculture and Agro-Business. He expressed gratitude to the Federal Government through TETFund for its support in infrastructural development and urged alumni and private sector players to complement government efforts.
The Acting Rector, Mr. Olorunwa Adegun, in his remarks, praised the governor’s intervention, noting that before his emergence, workers received as low as five per cent of their salaries, leading to hardship and low morale.
> “Your Excellency, before you came on board, the situation here was hopeless. Workers were owed 13 months, and many could barely survive. But today, you have restored hope,” Adegun said.
Adegun listed the accreditation of 68 academic programmes, the reopening of staff schools, and the successful hosting of the long-delayed convocation as key milestones achieved under Aiyedatiwa’s leadership.
Governor Aiyedatiwa, who was conferred with a fellowship award of the institution, also inaugurated several completed projects during the event.
