The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) Tuesday lambasted First Lady Aisha Buhari over her proposal to establish Muhammadu Buhari University.
Aisha disclosed her intention to establish a university after her husband last Saturday during a town hall meeting in Yola, Adamawa state.
Although she did not explain the time or place the university would be sited, explained that it would be established in collaboration with foreign partners from Sudan and Qatar.
Responding, ASUU stated that the declaration was a sad reminder of the president’s continued reduction of budgetary allocation to the education sector since 2015.
ASUU chairman, Omole of the University of Ibadan chapter, said the proposed university was a joke.
“When I heard about the proposed private university to be named after Mr President, I just looked at it as a joke taken too far.
“If we have a president in a country that has simply refused to fund public education and all we get from the first family is to establish a private university in collaboration with some foreigners, it is a disaster for this country and for a sitting president.
“The implication is that Nigerians should know that this leadership does not believe in government-funded education,” he said.
Meanwhile some academics see the private university after President Muhammadu Buhari as normal if the proponent, Aisha Buhari, meets all requirements to do so.
Aisha is a citizen of Nigeria. Why should she be denied the license to found a private university? Whether she calls the university ‘Muhammadu Buhari University’ or ‘Yemi Osinbajo University’ shouldn’t be the concern of anybody,” a lecturer at the University of Abuja who preferred anonymity told Blueprint in a chat.
Salih Kudu, a retired civil servant said Nigerians love to politicise everything about Buhari.
“If education has low budgetary allocation, should we blame Buhari? Buhari cannot fund education budget from his pocket. Budget is a national issue,” he said.
