ASUU Strike Protest: Protesting Students block Lagos-Ibadan Expressway

Students Protesting Over ASUU Strike

The Academic Staff Union of Universities' (ASUU) protracted strike, which has lasted for no less than seven months, was denounced by students in the South-Western part of the nation on Tuesday under the leadership of Nigerian Students (NANS).

The Lagos-Ibadan Expressway, Shagamu Interchange, was completely blocked by the throngs of protesting students.

Adegboye Emmanuel, the Coordinator for the South-West Zone of NANS, and Giwa Temitope, the National Public Relations Officer of NANS, respectively, both made statements on the protest grounds in which they claimed that President Muhammadu Buhari's Federal Government had broken its promises to reform education.

According to the Coordinator's statement;

“There is no point arguing about who is at fault or what is to be done, it is very clear that the rulers underfund education and the Buhari government is failing in its promises to revamp education.

“As it is today, no higher institution in Nigeria is world-class! Yet, our so-called public servants travel all over the world spending billions to send their kids abroad for studies.

“As major stakeholders in the educational sector, we are the ones who can save ourselves. We have monitored the yearnings of students from campus to campus through their social media platforms and also in their public writings.”

“Students all over Nigeria stand with ASUU. Our lecturers suffer the same hardships and mal-developments we suffer. The staff houses are as bad as the students’ hostels. In South Africa, a professor’s laboratory is far more equipped than that of any university in Nigeria.

“History has been killed and undermined, so we, the youths, do not know where we are coming from nor talk of knowing where we are headed. But we will not lament anymore. The new leadership of NANS is here to work with students to achieve our set aims and objectives. We believe that the student movement has its place in history. It is a task that we vow to fulfill. We will never let Nigerian students down!” The statement is partly read.

NANS went further to make below demands

“We call on ASUU leadership for a meeting as soon as possible to discuss solidarity actions and plan for the next phase of the struggles;

“We pass a vote of no confidence on both Ministers of Labour and Education; We call for the proper funding of the educational sector as against what has been attainable in the past seven years; 

“We Call on the Buhari government to pay all outstanding arrears and salaries of the lecturers. The policy of “No Work No Pay” is a fascist one, it’s therefore, condemnable and unacceptable to all the millions of students in Nigeria.”