All is definitely not well at the moment with the Ekiti State Council of Radio, Television, Theatre and Arts Workers’ Union of Nigeria RATTAWU as the Treasurer of the union, Com. Kemi Adeyanju tenders resignation letter, thereby leaving the executive committee with five members instead of constitutional eleven members less tha two years of the current administration.
Com. Adeyanju who is the immediate past auditor of the union was elected Treasurer during the last State delegates Conference on 9th of February 2024 In her resignation letter laden with frustration and loads of accusation against the State council Chairman, Com. Tola Popoola who incidentally comes from thesame establishment as the Treasurer, the Broadcasting service of Ekiti State, BSES.
Amomg other alegations, she accused the State Council Chairman of single-handedly withdrawing from the union’s account, bypassing the treasurer and financial secretary who are the only joint signatories to the account and not holding statutory monthly and quarterly meetings of the leadership of the Union in the State since assuming office. Com. Tola was alleged to have taken money on behalf of the union without remitting to the members of her executing nor informing them. She was also accused of shielding the PRO of the union who has relocated ouside the country for over one year and kept him in her scanty team.
It could be recalled that some petitions written by some aggrieved members of the union found their ways into the social media months ago where the State council Chairman was accused of delibrately leaving out five vacant positions in her cabinet so that only few executive members will be ‘enjoying’ the funds of the union. With the latest resignation, it could be deduced that the executive members ‘enjoying’ the union’s funds may be fewer than actually alledged.
In another petition addressed to the National President of the Union, Com. Tola Popoola was alleged to have practically shut down the women wing of the union and promoting herself as the Chairperson Women Wing, to the extent of presenting herself as the only qualified candidate for NLC Women Wing election from RATTAWU.
When interacting with the members of the union in the state, they decry the high highdedness of the State Council Chairman and the fact that the union in the state has become a shadow of its old active self since the last election. They plead with the national secretariat of the Union to help intervene in the endless absurd developments and restore the state council to normalcy.
