NIGERIAN GOVERNMENT DEAF AND DUMB - ASUU

Academic Staff Union of Nigerian Universities (ASUU) has condemned the attitude of the Federal Government towards the strike action embarked upon by the universities teachers saying that if the government has not defaulted in the implementation of the agreement reached and...

signed with the union, there would not have been a strike action.
ASUU Chairman, University of Ibadan Chapter, (UI) in an exclusive
interview said, "It is unfortunate the situation we have found
ourselves in this country. When we started this strike action, we felt
we are dealing with a responsible and responsive government. We felt
this is a government that would want to do that which is the yearning
of the people. We felt this is a government that will see the need to
quickly address issues that have led us to the strike. It is a pity
that we have been talking to deaf and dumb government. This is the
fourth month and this government is not yielding to the wishes of
Nigerians which is to fund public universities appropriately."
He continued, "It is not a nice story that Nigeria's universities have
been shut for four months and the government is not putting in serious
efforts to making sure that the problems are addressed. It is really
sad."
Ajiboye who noted that the nation's universities cannot continue to
run the way they are presently, said without the urgent intervention
of the government to arrest the rots that have accumulated over years,
the universities cannot produce the expected results.
The ASUU leader stated that the union has refused to shift ground so
that public universities could be protected for the children of the
poor to have access to the university education and have universities
to go.
Lamenting how the government has killed both primary and secondary
schools in the country, he appealed that efforts should be put in
place to sustain public tertiary institutions stressing, "the private
universities is unaffordable for the poor.
The lowest school fee in a private university is N700, 000. Where can
parents that are on minimum wage of N18, 000 get such amount of money
to send their children to such university?"
Ajiboye also condemned the attempt of the government to rubbish the
personality of Deacon Gamaliel Onosode and other eminent Nigerian
personalities who negotiated with the ASUU to produce the 2009
agreement.