Nigerian Popular Activist, Deji Adeyanju, has given reasons for the lingering strike by the Academic Staff Union of Universities, ASUU, putting the blame on the current administration.
“These are people who are stealing palliatives, hiding Indomie and rice in warehouses and you want them to take university education seriously? You want them to take ASUU seriously? Adeyanju said in a chat with newsmen on Tuesday.
The outspoken activist noted that there is a deliberate attempt by politicians to eliminate public universities in the country.
Deji said that Nigerians should not be surprised to see prolonged strikes in public institutions since the children of the President, vice President, Senate President, the Speaker, Governors and even commissioners and other public office holders are comfortably schooling abroad.
According to the activist, the President Muhammadu Buhari government came in with the promise to put an end to these, but has made things worse.
“The public university system in Nigeria has been abandoned. You can see that there is no public official that have their children in Nigerian schools. No one.
“Even the NUC Chairman, the head of the NUC, his children are schooling abroad. So how do you expect the schools to work?
“All their children are abroad. They’re busy sharing social Investment money. They’ve looted over N90 billion through the ministry of Humanitarian Affairs.
“Monies that should be used to develop the universities and pay the lecturers very well, so why won’t there be strike? Look at the universities in the country, they’re like refugees camps.
“The hostels are not habitable, the lecture theatres don’t have working air conditions, no fans, nothing works. The lecturers will be teaching and sweating. Nothing is working in all the public tertiary institutions in the country.
“You can see that all the schools that are functioning in this country are private schools. They destroy the public schools and have taken their children abroad.
“So you can see that it is a deliberate attempt to destroy education in this country. And you can see the lackadaisical attitude of the government. They’re not serious, they’re not serious in engaging.
Nothing good can come out of this country.
“This administration came in with the promise to bring change. Is this the change? Has anything changed? Things have gotten worse.
“The Aso Rock clinic is not working, yet they’re budgeting billions every year. Yet First Lady goes to Dubai to treat neck pain; President goes to UK for medical checkup, same with Senate President, Speaker, Senators, Governors and their deputies, even the commissioners.
“They go for medical and educational tourism. All the children of the President schooled abroad. All without exception. All the children of the Vice President schooled abroad as well as all the Senate President and the Speaker’s children. All the principal officers in the senate and the ministers and their children school abroad.
“That is not a country that will work. I will not waste my advice for ASUU. I’ll also not waste my advice for this government. This government is deaf and dumb. This government is an unreasonable one and advising it is like pouring water in a leaking basket and a waste of time.”
