ASUU Strike: Adamu Adamu Our Problem, We Have Only One Option Left – NANS President, Asefon
- The leadership of the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) has recently expressed frustration over the ongoing ASUU strike
- NANS has waved off the blame of the strike on ASUU poking fingers at the federal government for being an obstacle to the resumption of students
- In a more desperate attempt to ensure resumption, NANS resorted to spiritual approach which in turn did not yield any positive results
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The National Association of Nigerian Students, NANS, has said that it is strategizing on the next line of action against the authorities over the ongoing strike by the Academic Staff Union of Universities, ASUU.
In an exclusive chat with Legit.ng, the NANS President, Sunday Asefon urged Nigerian students to be ready for another face of their protest, expressing dissatisfaction over students' participation so far.
Source: Twitter
According to Asefon, NANS has exhausted all peaceful processes toward ending the ongoing strike and is now left with confrontation as the only option among the 3cs. He said that the option of consultation and consolidation have all been explored, and they have now resorted to the option of confrontation but that it seems the government is not a listening one, hence students must come out forcefully to challenge them.
Asefon said:
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“We are not overwhelmed and cannot be overwhelmed. The only thing is that we are trying to be strategic, and it seems we have a government that is not listening to the cry and yearning of the people. As such, we need to go back to the drawing board and discuss what to do.”
Even CAN intervention proved futile - NANS president
The NANS president also disclosed that they have decided to try the spiritual option, hence they have run to the Christain Association of Nigeria, CAN to intervene in the matter.
He said:
“Two weeks ago, we were in the street again in Abuja where we launched what could be called the street university. Second day of being in the school, we went to meet with the president of the Christain Association of Nigeria, CAN people had earlier advised us to meet CAN leadership and see how they can intervene. Some advised us to go spiritual, hence the reason we met with CAN president and some Obas. So we have met with the CAN President. And the feedback we got from him is that he has met with the Minister of Labour, and they had a discussion on the ASUU strike.
“The Minister told them to appeal to ASUU on their requests as they cannot meet ASUU’s demands at the moment. They said the government does not have the capacity to meet ASUU’s demands. They are now going to meet with the ASUU leadership, and while doing that, they have requested that we give them time.
“But by Monday or Tuesday, I should be in Abuja for a follow-up on their discussion. We will see how far they have gone and we will then know the next line of action. So we are not overwhelmed."
The problem of the education ministry is Adamu Adamu. I can say this boldly anytime. The minister’s health is an issue. Throughout last year, I’m not sure he spent five months in this country because of this health. The Minister of Education (State) is also a lawyer. I’m not sure he knows much in the education sector. So you don’t expect that kind of proactive behaviour from people who lack the knowledge to address educational issues. Simply put an educationist in the education sector. The person needs to understand how to run the business of education.
He said:
“Adamu Adamu is a journalist, and I’m not sure he really understands the sector, because it has never happened in the history of the country when all universities' systems would be grounded. This has never happened before. As a student, if you go to any school right now, you can’t have access to anything. Everything is grounded. For instance, how do you get your transcript if you are travelling out of the country? Nothing is accessible right now. Every door is shut. We have never had it so bad."
The NANS president charges Nigerian students to come out forcefully in protest as it appears the government does not exactly feel the impact of their protests. He charged parents or guardians to allow their wards to take part in the agitation for the resumption of schools, else the future of their children would be completely jeopardized.
He said:
“I urge my colleagues who are students to be more conscious of this issue. They need to come out forcefully to challenge the power that be. They are not forthcoming right now. They need to know that this is their life. The number of students who come out for protest is not commiserating with the number of us who are currently at home jobless. I’m calling on the students to come out.
“We have exhausted all peaceful approaches in resolving this issue, and it’s not working, so we are left with the last option of confrontation. As students' leaders, we believe in 3Cs. We have almost exhausted our 3Cs. We are done with consultation, we are done with consolidation, and the only thing left now is confrontation. And we are confronting. It seems these people did not really feel our level of confrontation. So if we are coming back again, we should come back with full force. Let them see that we are not joking.
“I want to challenge our parents; they should encourage their children or wards to be part of this campaign. They need to allow them to join the struggle. I call on all SUG presidents to ensure that students participate actively in this agitation. If the SUG presidents in our various campuses can mobilize a reasonable number of students, then we can get this done. The government should know that we are serious. This matter is beyond ASUU and as critical stakeholders and most affected by this, we can’t sit back. We need to take our destinies into our hands. Nigerian students should wake up. They should be proud they have a president who is not afraid to confront the authorities. We need to go beyond Twitter and Facebook because most of these ministers are not on Twitter or Facebook."
Legit.ng recalls that the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) on Monday, March 14, extended its ongoing strike action by two months. Prof. Abdulkadir Muhammad Danbazau, an ASUU official, confirmed the development to journalists.
The union's decision was influenced by the need to allow it and the federal government to reach a solid agreement in order to avoid further strikes in the future.
Since the strike action, NANS has confronted both the government and ASUU on the need to resolve the impasse so students can go back to school.
ASUU slams FG for prioritizing Kaduna-Niger Republic railway over education
Meanwhile, the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has again blamed the federal government for the ongoing strike in public universities.
The union’s national president, Professor Emmanuel Osodeke, stated in an interview with The Punch newspaper.
He said:
“The initial idea was that the government would have met all the demands within the four weeks. But since the government said they could not meet up with our demands in four weeks, we said let us give them eight weeks.
ASUU tackles NITDA over claims on its payment system
In a related development, ASUU has contradicted claims by the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) that its payment system failed an integrity test.
The ASUU payment platform known as the University Transparency and Accountability Solution has been a subject of scrutiny in the past few weeks following a statement by the director-general of NITDA doubting its potency.
Reacting to NITDA's position, the leadership of ASUU on Sunday, March 13 issued a press release stating that the allegations made by the federal government agency were false.
Source: Legit.ng
Adoyi Ali Ali Adoyi is a prolific writer and a graduate of the Benue State University, Makurdi, Benue State. Adoyi holds a B.A Theatre and Communications Arts. He has bagged many awards both in academics and in journalism. Some of the awards are 10 years Journalism Merit Award, Best graduating student (Dept) Most Outstanding student (Faculty), and others. Adoyi can be reached here: adoyi.ali@corp.legit.ng
Segun Adeyemi (Current Affairs and Politics Editor) Segun Adeyemi is a journalist with over 9 years of experience as an active field reporter, editor, and editorial manager. He has had stints with Daily Trust newspaper, Daily Nigerian, and News Digest. He currently works as an editor for Legit.ng's current affairs and politics desk. He holds a degree in Mass Communication (Adekunle Ajasin University). He is a certified digital reporter by Reuters, AFP and the co-convener of the annual campus journalism awards. Email: segun.adeyemi@corp.legit.ng.
