Students’ group blames Education Minister over lingering ASUU strike

By Sadiq Katsina

The Student Wing of the Coalition of Northern Groups (CNG-SW) has blamed the Minister of Education, Malam Adamu Adamu over the lingering strike by the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU).

Mr. Jamilu Aliyu-Charanchi, the leader of the student’s wing made the blame while briefing newsmen at the CNG Secretariat on Thursday in Katsina.

Aliyu-Charanchi described the manner in which he said the minister walked out on Nigerian students as shameful, therefore called on him to resign immediately over his action.

He further described the minister as lacking the political will, capacity and willingness to resolve the lingering ASUU crisis.

The group lamented that the four week warning strike embarked by the ASUU was already in its third week, expressing no hope that the issue could be resolved.

The leader said they will collaborate with the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) as well as other relevant stakeholders to shut down the country if the crisis is not resolved before the stipulated deadline given by ASUU.

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He added that, “While we commend the effort of NANS in calling attention to the implications of such actions, we condemn with all our might the shameful walk out on NANS by the Minister of Education.

“We see the action of the Minister as a gross show of unconscionable immorality, insensitivity, and impunity abhorrent to the collective sensibilities of the students, parents and indeed the country at large.

“We are concerned at the frequency of the disruption of the Nigerian education system that keeps frustrating the ambitions and aspirations of the youth to acquire knowledge.

“Sadly, this strike is the second industrial action embarked on by ASUU in less than two years, and the 16th since the inception of the fourth republic democracy in 1999.

“Regrettably in spite of all these disruptive actions, the nation’s university system, the innocent students and their parents are in all cases made the victims.

“It is disturbing that in between the number of ASUU strike related closures in the last 23 years, most undergraduates would have earned degrees in otherwise uninterrupted academic settings, according to a recent report.”