The Danger Of Unending ASUU Strikes

The ASUU Strike which has shut down many universities in our country is very very unfortunate.

This is because serious students who were in the mood to study and graduate to join the workforce, with time, begin to forget even the things they have studied. They begin to ask themselves if it’s worth it.

How do we hope to have a serious, competitive country in the future if our students are made to lose their passion in education.

Countries like the United States invest billions upon billions in education and reap mega money making machines like Facebook, Apple and other titans. In Nigeria at present, arguably the trendiest educational issue on people’s minds is not educational advancement but an educational strike.

I hope the Education Minister will solve the ASUU strike issue within the 2 weeks given to him by President Buhari, because this strike has gone on long enough!

Most of the blame for this lies squarely with the government. Despite all the money Nigeria had made from crude oil, government has not been able to do so many tangible things in our country.

Looking at the way ASUS strike negotiations are treated by some government officials, sometimes one gets the impression that the issue is being treated with levity, rather than the seriousness it deserves.

We ask those in government who know the value of education to a populace to help set the agenda to push this trend of ASUU strikes away.

Look at how Dubai turned itself into an economic spotlight with just 10 years worth of crude oil!

Let me remind government that it’s not just natural resources that Nigeria can profit from but also our vast human resources.

And those resources need the refinement of education. Just yesterday, people online were laughing at a youth corper, for writing in very poor English. It is true that we should do our best to improve ourselves. But we should also be ashamed of the education system that has failed that graduate.

I appeal to people with good conscience in government to do everything they can to ensure that the ASUU Strike issues are resolved amicably.

The truth is that the students are suffering. The students are idle. The students are unsure of their future. The students feel let down! If BBNaija could employ most of them as housemates, this wouldn’t be much of a problem. But as big as BBNaija is, it can only take in twenty something housemates every year.

Under International Human Rights norms, a government has the Responsibility to Provide for it’s citizens where the private sector cannot provide.

I appeal to the government and to ASUU to come to the negotiation table again with open minds and in consideration of the long-suffering students.