Public varsity teachers down chalks, students' future uncertainIT is ungentlemanly to unilaterally breach agreements freely entered into. In more civilized climes, the consequences are grave. But this is Nigeria where anything can happen.As such, public university teachers, after waiting for about two years for the Federal Government to honour its part of an agreement it willingly endorsed for them, they ran out of patience and decided to strike even when there is another year remaining for the agreement to be described as having been repudiated or honoured.Nigeria public universities are once again inching back to the better-forgotten era of spending seven years for a four-year course of study.To the students who go to school, the mean age for graduation is now about 28, no matter how fast or brilliant a student might want to pass through the system or brilliant. Ordinarily, parents who send their wards to private primary and secondary schools want them to graduate from a four-year course of study at the university at 21 or less. But the system currently adds seven or more years due to strikes by any of the various stakeholders in the universities ' teachers, non-teaching staff or students.Currently, if there is no change of heart by the teachers and the total, indefinite strike plays out as they are insisting, and knowing the government to careless for public education, then, the nation may be back to the inglorious days of students staying out home for upwards of one year.The students are already groaning just four days into the strike embarked upon by their teachers - the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) - over the non-implementation of the ASUU agreement with the Federal Government of Nigeria (FGN) since 2009.The Union is asking the government, among other things, to improve university's funding, review the process of appointing vice-chancellors and up the retirement age of professors' cadre to 70 years, as contained in the ASUU/FGN 2009 agreement.It is indeed one agreement that has come through a tortuous path since 2001. Prior to the start of current industrial action, ASUU, through its National Executive Council (NEC), had given government a two-month ultimatum to address the issues.In a communiqu signed by the ASUU President, Prof. Ukachukwu Awuzie at the end of the union's meeting last week in Port Harcourt, it stated: 'We also drew attention of the present sorry state of the university system in our country, the rot and decay that are eating deep into the very fabric of our university, the cancer of underfunding that is fast eroding the quality of our graduates and threatening the very essence of university education in our country.'NEC was disappointed that rather than attend to the serious problem of underfunding through genuine implementation of the ASUU/FGN Agreement of 2009, government keeps on procrastinating and persisting in its deception and lies. Our experience sadly shows that this government cannot be trusted to keep its words. A government that does not respect agreements cannot and should not be expected to fulfill promises to people,' the statement reads in part.Over two years since the signing of the agreement, the government is yet to work out the modalities for implementation and begin a sincere process of its implementation.Awuzie explained that under the 2009 ASUU/ FGN agreement, the Federal Government was expected to release N1.5 trillion, within a three-year period, to all federal universities as recurrent and capital grants.The Union described the ongoing institutional accreditation as part of a conspiracy by the President Goodluck Jonathan administration, through the National Universities Commission (NUC), to give a false impression that all was well with the nation's university system.Awuzie regretted that over the years, Federal allocations to the education sector have hovered around eight per cent, as compared to other African countries like Ghana and South Africa, which spend as high as 30 per cent of their budgetary allocations on education.He equally carpeted Dr. Jonathan on the sorry state of the nation, saying Jonathan's administration was merely intent on mortgaging the future of the country to the West.He further said: 'In the recent months, the Federal Government has stepped up its campaign for devaluation, privatisation and petroleum price increase, but the Nigerian labour movement, including ASUU, will resist them all.'Some of the objectives of the agreement are to arrest the rot and reverse the decay in the university system in order to reposition it for greater responsibilities in national development; to arrest the brain drain, not only by enhancing the remuneration of academic staff, but also by disengaging them from the encumbrances of a unified civil service wage structure; to restore Nigerian universities through immediate, massive and sustained financial intervention; and to ensure genuine university autonomy and academic freedom.Awuzie said that it was unacceptable that the vital aspects of the agreement: 'reversing the rot and decay in the university system through massive and sustained funding; review of pension laws; retirement age for academics in the professorial cadre; review of NUC and JAMB laws, earned allowances to entitled academics etc, have not been implemented,' he said.Since the indefinite strike started on Monday, minds of the affected student have been disturbed by yet another round of distraction in the academic process. With academic activities in public universities visited by The Guardian grounded to a halt, students are either stranded on campuses or roaming the streets in search of what to do.Business Administration student of Adekunle Ajasin University, Akugba-Akoko, Ondo State, Oluwaseun Ojufun said that it is worrisome that the government has consistently turned blind-side to matters concerning the youths and a practical example is the current indefinite strike embarked by their lectures.Her words: 'I think we have seen one unnecessary strike too many in this part of the world. If Federal Government has reached an agreement with ASUU, so why would the government not stand by its words and the Minister of Education did not resign' I think it is a shame on the government,' she said.Ojufun noted that the strike is an ill wind that blows nobody good. 'As a people, we should remember that the idle mind is the devil's workshop. Indefinite stay at home will lead to decline in discipline and encourage immoral conducts, with dare consequence on the society.'Some of our institutions are already behind schedule in school calendar. The chain effect, with current strike, is additional years in school and delay in youth service.'Ojufun however has some words for President Jonathan: 'It is understandable that President Jonathan made several youth-related promises during the April 2011 electioneering campaign.'He at several fora swore to high heavens to revamp the education system, create employment opportunities and build more schools among others. Is this how the promises would be fulfilled and make the country one of the 20 leading economies in the world by 2020' We know where our mates are in other countries and it is not a crime to be a Nigerian,' she said.From one institution to the other, all the students bemoaned their forced stay at home as a result of the current strike.Oluwatoyin Dosunmu of the Economics Department, Olabisi Onabanjo University (OOU), Ogun State; Rivers State University of Science and Technology (RSUST) second-year Mechanical Engineering student, Ilaye Sokari; a part two Political Science student, Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU), Ile-Ife, Osun State, Olaolu Adeyemi, and his colleagues, final year Economics student, Amaka Ozumba and Bridget Okon, a part three Microbiology major; a postgraduate student of Mass Communication, Bayero University, Kano (BUK), Miss Mercy John; 400-level Mass Communication student of University of Jos (UNIJOS), Igbariam Campus, Miss Amaka Onubogu, her 200-level Law counterpart, James Apeh; the Student Union Government (SUG) Caretaker Committee Secretary of UNIJOS, Francis Zitta; University of Uyo (UNIUYO) 100-level Fine Arts student, Enefiok Etim; Tijani Oluwaseun of Banking and Finance, University of Benin (UNIBEN), Edo State; his counterpart in Animal Science, final year Okasime Dimowo; Yemi Kareem, an Engineering student of Ladoke Akintola University of Technology, Ogbomoso, Oyo State; and many other students who spoke to The Guardian in various schools, all condemned the forced vacation they were currently observing as a result of the strike action.Many blamed the Federal Government for allowing the issues to degenerate to the level of teachers embarking on the strike.According to Dosunmu, she believes that this strike will contribute to brain rustiness that is inevitable.'Some of us that are adventurous and cannot bare an indefinite stay at home may find succour in casual work. But where such are not available and ends still have to be met, some youths will find nefarious activities such as fraud, pick pocketing, prostitution, etc, almost attractive. The danger is on the society.'She appealed to the parties to tow the path of dialogue and resolve the industrial action quickly.'We cannot continue like this. The authority should not toy with our future. Most of these people in authority have their children studying abroad or in private expensive private universities.'Most of them do not care if the public university system is grounded forever. What I will say is that teachers are also human beings and they deserve to be treated properly. Without teachers we will not have lawmakers or governors. Yet, this is one country where teachers are usually at the receiving ends and it is not fair,' she said.Kalio, in an emotional voice said it would be preposterous for a country whom none of its universities is among the first best 500 in the world, to afford another protracted strike.'Maybe somebody needs to tell our rulers that we are already in a crisis. Former President Olusegun Obasanjo has warned that revolution looms. It is unfortunate that those in government do not seem to appreciate the damage they are inflicting on university education in Nigeria. Is it because their children are not schooling here that they have decided to be insensitive to the rest of us. This is a shame considering the fact that the President was once a teacher,' she said.Sokari who expressed dissatisfaction with the situation in public universities, noted that as a result of incessant strike actions by the unions since 2008, his university has suffered loss of one academic session.'The situation is making education uninteresting and discouraging. Sometimes, I just think I should drop out and start a business or do something more meaningful with my life. I don't think those in government and lecturers care about the lives of other Nigerians. Do you blame them when their children don't school here with us,' he said.At OAU where a pre-emptive action was taken, ostensibly in favour of the students, the university arranged for examinations to be rushed before the start of the strike. And this, according to Adeyemi 'is a practical demonstration of the effect the strike will have on students'. Lamenting the strike, he noted, too much pressure was placed on the students some of whom have to cope with writing three papers in a day including on Sunday.Corroborating Adeyemi, Ozumba said the strike has created serious anxiety particularly for final year students who are expecting to participate in the next batch of the National Youth service Corps (NYSC). 'My fear is that the strike may not permit our lecturers to submit the examination result in time since they are not expected to work during the strike.'But Onubogu, who completed her Industrial Attachment yesterday at UNIJOS and expected to go back to school, her anger is against the government. She said that the strike is wicked, cruel and uncalled for, adding however that the major fault comes from the Federal Government that has failed to see reason to negotiate with ASUU.'Normally, we are supposed to resume our first semester on December 12 after our industrial attachment. Now we hear that the strike will last 90 days before anything at all which will be around March or thereabout. Staying at home is boring. Idleness does not pay and I abhor it. It affects academic activities. Strike has not brought any positive academic development. Last time when ASUU embarked on strike, some male students were involved in robbery while their female counterparts engaged themselves in prostitution just to make sure that they survived.'If there were no strike, it would have been extremely difficult for such students to engage in such vices. Strike does not benefit both the parents and the students because we will be a burden to our parents.'Zitta appealed to the Federal Government to step up actions to solve this problem once and for all. 'Whatever are their demands, the Federal Government should solve them to make sure academic activities start in earnest. As for us in UNIJOS, this school has witnessed a lot of strikes. There are students who should have graduated since. But up till now, they are still marking time.''First, as they say the students (youths) are leaders of tomorrow, but leaders of tomorrow at what age' If at our late 20s or early 30s we are still in school struggling to graduate, finally when we are out, the struggle continues on the streets looking for employment. All we get from the HR (Human Resources department of companies) is we must have two to four years working experience and must be of age 25 down. When then would our dreams be achieved, after they make us graduate at old age'' Oluwaseun asked.To Jesse N. Musa, a Part 3 student of Department of Civil Engineering of University of Maiduguri (UNIMAID), Borno State, the current teachers' strike is a serious setback for students and their parents and guardians, because the students were still contending from the indefinite closure of the university over the Boko Haram insurgency. 'This week's strike will make students lose one and a half semesters.'Boko Haram and the Federal Government are frustrating us to graduate on schedule. With these interrupts and incessant closures, how could students be properly groomed academically and fit into the general society' Like me who is in Part 3 of Civil Engineering, will graduate in 2015 instead of 2013. While some of my mates in private universities would have completed their NYSC a year or two before I graduate in thisUniversity of Maiduguri.'He said the university had had a harvest of incessant closures and strikes since 2010 causing many students to be confused and frustrated with academic disruptions and frequent travels, which are associated with auto crashes and armed robberies on the highways.Curiously enough, only one lecturer at the UNIBEN spoke up against the strike embarked upon by his colleagues. To him, the Union ought to wait till the end of the three years agreement before embarking on a strike if the government defaulted.A senior lecturer at the Department of History and International Relations, UNIBEN, Dr. Benson Osadolor, said the present leadership of ASUU was not carrying its members along. 'Before now, we use to have the local chapters passing resolutions to support the position of the national leadership but now, it is the national ASUU leadership that passes resolutions and just direct the local chapters to follow. The strike action is going to have adverse effect on our academic calendar, it will completely disrupt it because we just resumed a new session.'To me, the strike action is unnecessary because the agreement is supposed to span three years but two years into the agreement, one party is saying that the other is not implementing the agreements reached; why don't they wait for the end of the three years and then make a comprehensive report against the implementation of the agreement.'Osadolor added: 'Now, NASU and SSANU (two non-teaching unions in the universities) are also talking of extending their retirement age to 70 from 65 but many people don't know that ASUU is asking for the retirement age to be at 70 for only professors and associate professors. So, what happens to other cadre of lecturers' They are not talking of this,' he said.The Head of Department of Mass Communication of BUK, Dr. Balarabe Maikaba appealed to the students to bear with their teachers to make things better for all stakeholders.He agrees that the strike would disrupt academic activities.Making reference to a colleague that just left the BUK for greener pasture at the National Assembly, Maikaba said academics may be forced to leave the ivory towers in droves due to poor remuneration and working environment.According to him: 'The strike action does not only affect the students, it affects the lecturers as well because of the fact that we are not doing anything now and this is harmful to us.'We have been exploring for ways to avoid going on strike but then we realise that the government is not responding to our request and the only language they understand is the language of strike. So that is the only tool available to us, and we are using it to make the government listen to us. The last time we had seven days warning strike and nothing came out of it. We have addressed a press conference and nothing happened. So we have no other option but to embark on the industrial action.'Other teachers who spoke to The Guardian were also for the strike in other to put the universities in proper footing once and for all.
Click here to read full news..
