The two parties at loggerheads failed to put smiles on the gloomy faces of Nigerian university students as the blame game continues.
Even after waiting anxiously for something positive to come out in the series of meetings held between the federal government representatives and the Academic Staff Union of Universities, ASUU, within the one-month warning strike embarked by the union, none among the elephants fighting is showing any kind of concern to the helpless and now hopeless Nigerian students whose dreams and aspirations have been shattered as a result of this face-off between the parties.
The peaceful demonstration embarked by the students in showing their grievances has yielded no positive results but rather exposes the student’s ineptitude to judiciously utilise the opportunity to talk to the minister in a respectable manner which might lead to something positive.
The students were fed with wrong information which make them go there with false allegations against the incumbent minister of educationducation and other government dignitaries instead of focusing on issues related to the strike and possible solutions. The minister also failed in his responsibility felt reluctant to listen to and respond to the protesting students but decided shamelessly walked out of the meeting.
The situation is getting out of hand as the government’s nonchalant attitude towards the education sector entirely appears to be disheartening talk more of meeting the demands of the striking lecturers. The lingering crisis has been disrupting the academic activities every year and the government of the day seems to be doing little or nothing to bring an end to this crisis. Indeed, we are reaping the catastrophic consequences of electing leaders with little or no clue on the impact of education on nation-building and national development.
Why should political office holders bother when their children in foreign universities? The recent swift evacuation of students from Ukraine is a pointer. So their major concern now is the upcoming APC national convention not the ASUU strike, fuel scarcity, or the insecurity bedeviling the country.
ASUU, on the other hand, failed to be polite and follow due process and decorum in dealing with the government. Therefore, they should stop making irritating contrast and incomparable issues concerning especially the remuneration, allowance, and welfare of political officeholders.
Unarguably, the behaviour of those in power is highly unlikely for the Nigerian government to meet with ASUU’s demands. Besides, all the meetings, protests, blame game, and accusations won’t yield any positive results and the strike will continue.
The matter at hand is beyond regime change, this is about the future of the country. Besides, the shade of Nigerian politics is being shared between the same ruling class for over a decade, irrespective of political inclination. Where do we expect the so-called change to come from?
However, if government believes that the young people struggling to be educated are the future of the country and knows the implications of having illiterates to oversee the affairs of government, they should, as a matter of urgency, find a lasting solution to this lingering and perturbing crisis affecting Nigerian tertiary institutions.
Moreover, after the one month warning strike, another two months rollover strike was declared by the union; something that puts that creates high uncertainty for Nigerian university students as to to whether they can return to school anytime soon.
Above all, the government should know that ASUU is an association of intellectuals so they can hardly be deceived. Therefore, the agreements with the union must be honoured before they will suspend the strike action. The striking lecturers should also look at the exigencies and the state of the country’s economy in considering the offer made to them. For the students, we should exercise more patience and not go for yet another protest because nobody is there to listen to us. We are always at the receiving end and this too shall pass.
Mubarak Shuaybu Shelleng,
Department of Mass Communication, University of Maiduguri,
Maiduguri, Borno state
