Aliyu, Aturu, others seek end to ASUU strike

Eminent Nigerians, civil rights lawyer, Mr.
Bamidele Aturu, Governor Babaginda
Aliyu of Niger State and woman activist,
Mrs. Ritalori Ogbebor, have called on both
the Federal Government and the
Academic Staff of Universities Union to
end the lingering strike, which has
continued for over two months.
Aturu, who made the call in a statement
on Tuesday, blamed the Federal
Government for allowing the ongoing
ASUU strike to linger by not making any
serious attempt to resolve the problem.
He thus called on the Federal Government
to implement its agreement with ASUU in
order to save the nation's higher
education system.
He said, "It needs to be stressed that once
an agreement has been reached by
parties, it ought to be respected and
implemented.
"If there is any intervening factor or
reason that makes full implementation of
an agreement impossible, then the parties
must agree as to the way forward. It is
therefore unacceptable that the Federal
Government should attempt to bully
ASUU to accept that it can renege on the
agreement as it pleases as it is doing at
the moment."
Also, Aliyu advised members of ASUU to
reconsider their position not to dialogue
with the Federal Government over the
issue.
He also noted that the Federal
Government should stop signing
agreement it could not honour.
Aliyu gave the advice in Minna, when he
received the United Nations International
Children Emergency Fund Country
Representative in Nigeria, Mrs. Jane
Gough at the Government House, Minna.
He said ASUU should realise that Nigeria
and the students were losing as a result
of the prolonged strike.
He said in recent past Nigerian
universities students were "spending
more time than necessary" as a result of
strike by their lecturers, a development he
said was not in the interest of the country
and the children.
He added, "I want to say that we should
not enter into any agreement we know we
are incapable of fulfilling, I appeal to
ASUU to reconsider their stand because at
the end of the day, it is the nation that
suffers."
Ogbebor on Monday in Lagos while
addressing journalists said any act which
aimed at undermining qualitative
education could spell doom for the nation.
While underscoring the need for the
Federal Government and the ASUU to
work out modalities to end the strike in
the interest of the students and the nation.
Ogbebor stressed that the strike had
forced some of the undergraduates out of
school, with some of them enlisting in
street gangs that waste their time in cyber
crime.