Atiku, 215 others sign petition to end ASUU strike
asking the Federal Government and the Academic Staff Union of Universities to end the industrial
dispute which has kept public universities shut for four months.
The petition launched on change.org, a go-to site for web protests, is asking President Goodluck Jonathan and the National President of ASUU, Dr. Nassir Faggae, to reach an “amicable consensus.”
In the petition entitled, “Mr. President and the Academic Staff Union of Universities: Please End the ASUU Strike now,” the petitioners said the Presidency should stop playing politics with education of the Nigerian youth.
The petition read in part, “Since the ASUU strike began, it has been over half a semester, a lot in the life of students waiting at home, not knowing when the strike will be over. The future of Nigeria is at stake. Stop playing politics with education.
“It is urgent we send a message that it is long past time for the FG and ASUU to reach consensus and get students back to school by ending this strike.”
A majority of non-students who appended their signature to the petition noted that they joined the online protest with a view to crying out to ASUU and the FG to consider poor students whose parents cannot afford the luxury of sending them overseas to study like the sons and daughters of political office holders.
Former Vice-President, Atiku Abubakar, joined other students and concerned Nigerians clamouring for a speedy end to the crisis rocking the higher education sector.
Atiku, who featured the link to the petition signing website on his Twitter handle, wrote, “We should never play politics with education. Our future depends on it. It is time for the FG and ASUU to reach a consensus and get students back to school by ending this strike.”
An Abuja-based post-graduate student in one of the public universities in the country, Mubarak Jubrin, expressing his dissatisfaction, wrote: “I am stuck with a semester to finish my Master’s programme. The FG should be doing everything possible to rescue the one institution left that is working towards producing better human beings who will shape the future of our dear country.”
Noting that prolonged shutting down of public universities is a dangerous omen for the society and development of the nation, a Kaduna-based student, Tarik Abubakar, also said Nigerians students were being denied their rights to education.
“Students in other countries are enjoying their rights to education. I am pleading with the FG and ASUU to settle their issue and call off the strike,” Abubakar stated.
A Nigerian student studying at the University of Cape Town, South Africa, Godspower Onwudiwe, lamented that the industrial action paints a bad picture of Nigeria on the international scene.
Onwudiwe stated, I feel so sorry for my beloved country because these incessant strikes are a barrier to her general development. Also, as a student in the Diaspora, it paints a very pitiful and shameful picture on our international identity.
“I cannot wait to not only see this strike end but also the end of future strikes to the detriment of the future of this generation and our country at large.”
Jemima Gana, who was moved to sign the petition because she believes that the status quo needs to change as the prosperous future of Nigeria depends on quality education, which is being threatened by the strike.
Gana, who according to the information she provided on the site, is based in Lagos, said Nigerian students need a stable learning environment devoid of strikes for them to be able to compete globally.
“It is so important to me because it is high time the FG took the value of education seriously and in high regard. Students in Nigeria need a stable environment to acquire knowledge and graduate on time in order to contribute their skills to the growth and development of this great nation,” she wrote.
FG reiterates call on ASUU to end strike
The Federal Government on Tuesday reiterated its call on
striking university lecturers to return to work in the interest of
students and prevent further damage to the education system.
The Minister of Information, Mr Labaran Maku, made the call during the Ministry’s monthly press briefing in Abuja.
He said that government had conceded to most of the demands made by the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) and wondered why the union would not budge.
He said government's commitment to resolve the crisis was further demonstrated by its representation by Vice President Namadi Sambo in the dialogue.
Maku explained that the strike was not for salaries but for allowances, as salaries had been increased.
"Salaries have been increased by 54.3% which is half of their monthly income, but they still insist on their 100 billon allowance.
"Government offered N30 billion, but after a meeting with the vice president, government promised another N10 billion, making it N40 billion.
"Government has also promised N100 billion from Education Trust Fund and the N40 billon allowance have already been paid in many universities, yet they are still under lock and key," he added.
The minister also stated that no government had cooperated with ASUU the way this present government had.
"We are building an infrastructure in the universities. For example, we have 38 new buildings at the University of Benin.
"No one would want our teachers to suffer because I have worked as a teacher, same as the president, but we cannot give all that they are asking.
"No nation can move forward if we all expect government to give 100 percent of their time and effort to our problems. We run an economy that needs attention in all phases," he said.
He, however, sympathised with students now at home and called on parents and Nigerians in general to appeal to ASUU to go back to the classrooms.
"It is not in the interest of the country for the strike to continue."
Robbers on power bikes attack bullion van in Apapa,Lagos
Commercial activities at Ijora Badia, in the Apapa area of Lagos State, came to a halt on Wednesday when policemen and robbers engaged in a gun duel.
PUNCH Metro learnt that the robbers, who had arrived Marine Bridge on several power bikes, dislodged a bullion van laden conveying a huge amount of money from its escort vehicle by opening fire at them.
It was said that the robbers started shooting sporadically into the air to scare motorists and residents, and attempted to escape with the bullion van. Their progress was said to have been slowed down by heavy traffic.
Our correspondent learnt that the Divisional Police Officer, Apapa, Usman Ndanbabo, and policemen from the Area B Command arrived at the scene after being alerted by the sound of gunfire. The robbers reportedly disembarked from the bullion van and engaged the police in a shootout.
Other police divisions within the area command were said to have also blocked all the escape routes and dispatched anti-robbery teams to assist the Apapa Division.
In the gun duel which lasted for several minutes, a member of the Nigerian Navy and two other civilians were said to have sustained injuries.
However, one of the robbers was reportedly shot dead while another was arrested.
It was learnt that the Navy personnel and the others, who were injured were rushed to a nearby hospital for treatment. As of press time, the condition of the injured could not be ascertained.
The Police Public Relations Officer, Lagos Police Command, Ngozi Braide, told our correspondent on the telephone that the remaining suspects escaped with bullet wounds.
Braide said, “The DPO of Apapa Division was informed of the gunfire around Ijora Badia Bridge and dispatched a team of anti-robbery policemen. The robbers opened fire on the policemen and our men retaliated. One of the robbers was killed, another arrested, while the others escaped with bullet wounds.
“A yellow unregistered power bike, with the inscription, Apache Hipar, was recovered from the robbers as well as two Ak-47 rifles with double magazine each loaded with 30 rounds of ammunition.
“Meanwhile, investigations are ongoing to arrest the fleeing suspects but normalcy has returned to the area.”
PUNCH Metro had reported on October 9, 2013, that some gunmen, on a bike, shot and killed three policemen in a patrol van in Ijora Olopa area of the state.
Police sources told our correspondent that they were working on the theory that it was the same gang of robbers that operated on Wednesday.
A policeman from Area ‘C’ Police Command, Surulere, Lagos, who pleaded for anonymity, identified the dead robber as one of the culprits.
“You may recall that two weeks ago, five policemen on patrol were shot and three of them died while two survived after the robbers on a bike opened fire on their vehicle. One of the surviving policemen gave us information and from what we put together, it is highly possible that it is the same gang,” he said.
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