A group under the Save Public Education Campaign has implored University lecturers, students and parents across the country to gear up for mass actions against the ongoing strike action embarked upon by the Academic Staff Union of Universities ( ASUU ).
The group explained that the protest is aimed at compelling the Nigerian government to take necessary steps to end the industrial action.
Speaking at a press conference on Monday in Abuja on behalf of the group the Co conveners , Comrade Vivian Bello and Comrade Dimeji Macaulay,criticized President Muhammadu Buhari led government for wasting humongous amount of money and resources on political parties’ Nomination forms and Primaries as priorities while relegating issue of education and future of Nigerian children to the background.
She described the action of government toward the plight of the lecturers which bordered on issues of poor welfare as ridiculous, absurd and unacceptable.
She lamented the time lost by the students in public universities across the country which she said amounted to entire two and half years.
She said: ” Distressing statistics show, that the Academic Staff Union of Universities, ASUU has been on strike for a total of over 725 days, since the beginning of this administration over issues that bother largely on poor welfare, University Autonomy and lack of adequate funding for Universities. When tallied inversely, this amounts to an entire two and half years lost, in the educational lives of innocent Nigerian Children/Students in public Universities across the Country.
” It did not end there; The Academic Staff Union of Polytechnics, and Colleges of Education, ASUP and COEASU are all also currently on strike on similar issues as ASUU. We all can see clearly, that this is an all-round collapse of the Tertiary Education in the Country.
“We make bold to say, that if government will recognize the futility in its so-called insecurity-fighting campaign, change strategy and invest a greater proportion of the resources it is expending in the insecurity campaign in providing robust, efficient and quality educational system and structure and qualitatively educate its teeming citizenry, within a calculated period of time, insecurity will gradually die a natural death in Nigeria and the society will take on its hitherto regular and peaceful equilibrium.
In order words, we submit boldly that, education can be a veritable panacea to insecurity in Nigeria.
” In view of the gravity of the situation, we make a clarion call for unity and coming together of staff unions, students, workers and communities across the Country, to mobilize and get ready for civic mass actions to compel the government to take the necessary steps to end the strike and have the millions of our children and students, return to school to end the jeopardy of their Education and future ”
Macaulay faulted unpopular policies of Buhari’s led government
in education sector which he said had affected public universities and tertiary institutions across the country.
He implored government to discontinue with the IPPIS platform adding that evidence by the striking academic unions showed that is the platform is problematic, inconsistent and fraudulent.
Macaulay called for immediate payment of all withheld salaries of the striking academic lecturers and unions.
