The National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) on Tuesday led students within the South-Western region of the country to protest the almost seven months strike by the Academic Staff Union of Universities ASUU strike.
BASIC FACTS
- Students under National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) this Tuesday, barricaded the Lagos Ibadan Express Way.
- The students were protesting the continued closure of the universities.
- The students asked the Federal Government to reverse it no work no pay stance.
WHAT WE KNOW
Commuters plying the Lagos Ibadan Express Way, were today stranded for hours as students barricaded the road.
The protesting students in their hundreds thronged the highway and blocked the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway, Shagamu Interchange.
Speaking on the protest ground, the Coordinator, South-West Zone, and National Public Relations Officer of NANS, Adegboye Emmanuel and Giwa Temitope, respectively, the student leaders said the Federal Government, led by the President Muhammadu Buhari has failed on its promises to revamp education.
The protesting students have vowed to mobilise to shut down the Presidential Villa if their demands to meet ASUU demands and revamp education in the country are not met.
NOTABLE QUOTE
A statement by the Coordinator said, “There is no point arguing about who is at fault or what is to be done, it is very clear that the rulers underfund education and the Buhari government is failing in its promises to revamp education.
“As it is today, no higher institution in Nigeria is world-class! Yet, our so-called public servants travel all over the world spending billions to send their kids abroad for studies.
“As major stakeholders in the educational sector, we are the ones who can save ourselves. We have monitored the yearnings of students from campus to campus through their social media platforms and also in their public writings.”
“Students all over Nigeria stand with ASUU. Our lecturers suffer the same hardships and mal-developments we suffer. The staff houses are as bad as the students’ hostels. In South Africa, a professor’s laboratory is far more equipped than that of any university in Nigeria.
“History has been killed and undermined, so we, the youths, do not know where we are coming from nor talk of knowing where we are headed. But we will not lament anymore. The new leadership of NANS is here to work with students to achieve our set aims and objectives. We believe that the student movement has its place in history. It is a task that we vow to fulfill. We will never let Nigerian students down!” The statement is partly read.
The protesting Nigerian students, made the following demands:
“We call on ASUU leadership for a meeting as soon as possible to discuss solidarity actions and plan for the next phase of the struggles;
“We pass a vote of no confidence on both Ministers of Labour and Education; We call for the proper funding of the educational sector as against what has been attainable in the past seven years;
“We Call on the Buhari government to pay all outstanding arrears and salaries of the lecturers. The policy of “No Work No Pay” is a fascist one, it’s therefore, condemnable and nonacceptable to all the millions of students in Nigeria.”
CATCH-UP
Recall that ASUU began its strike on February 14, 2022. What began as a warning strike has lingered for almost seven months now with no resumption date in sight.
Rather than allowing negotiations and dialogue, the FG on Monday, preferred to drag ASUU to court.
TAKEAWAY
It’s is good NANS have woken up. However, the question is, what of other regions of NANS? Is a protest as this not supposed to have been nationwide.
The Federal Government have not only shown itself incapable of conflict resolution but also unwillingness to resolve the conflict between ASUU and the government.
The unwillingness of the government to quickly resolve the impasse with ASUU is a proof that this government have little interest in the education and knowledge based industry.
