On February 14, the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) embarked on one of its perennial strikes, over what it described as the federal government’s inability to honour agreements reached with the Union in 2009. PAUL OKAH speaks with a cross section of Nigerians on whether the lecturers are on point, especially as the Senior Staff Association of Nigeria Universities (SSANU) and the Non-Academic Staff Union of Allied and Education Institutions (NASU) have agreed to suspend their own strikes.
Varsity facilities an eyesore
I am a lecturer and an ASUU member. I am directly affected by the faceoff between ASUU and the FG. Apart from that, the public needs to understand that ASUU is not fighting for lecturers alone. We are fighting for the Nigerian student. We are not strangers to the fact that university undergraduates sit on the floor to receive lectures. I teach a class of 500 in a classroom meant for 30 to 50 students. That is outrageous. It shouldn’t be. They are cases that we have had to give lectures outside because I am a biologist. I mean, I am a biotechnologist and we do practicals. The lab can’t carry more than 50 and you are saddled with about 200 students for Genetics 2. For Genetics 1, we have about 800 students that I teach. That is a large class. Tell me how a normal human being can do a laboratory practical for 800 students. It is not possible. Those are the things we are fighting. Can anyone of us proudly use a public toilet in a public university? You can’t walk into it. Don’t even talk about the hostels. They are an eyesore. Yes, there are cleaners, but how much cleaning can a cleaner do? You have a block with probably 50 rooms and you expect one elderly woman to clean all those rooms, not to talk of washing toilets for them. These 50 rooms are inhabited by maybe 3, 4, 10 or 15 people in a room and they all use one toilet. So, you expect one cleaner to clean it? No, these are inhuman conditions. So, we need the government to step up. That is what ASUU is asking for.
Come into the schools. They are public schools owned by the government. Come in and clean these schools. Build more hostels, build more toilets, build more classrooms, make them interactive, internet compliant and let our public schools be so up to date that even private schools will go out of business. That is what we are asking for.
Dr Hannah Edim Etta, National Coordinator, Sofadondo
ASUU should soft-pedal
Since I was born, I have always heard about ASUU embarking on strikes. It is not pleasing to the ear. It is regrettable that our universities are what they are. It is not pleasing that our children are at home. Just recently, our children came out again to write JAMB. I was wondering, you are writing JAMB when there is a set that has not graduated? There are a lot of backlogs, so what are we doing? While we criticise the FG for not meeting up with the situation, which has mounted since 2009, as ASUU would say, we should also seek the understanding of the lecturers to take these things in piecemeal. Government can settle part of it, then next step, settle another part. Then it will grow in that light. Every sector of the economy needs funding. If you go to our hospitals, there are no physicians, then you will know no sector is perfect. We know that education is key, but what is going on right now is discouraging. Yes, to the lecturers, it is for them to have a final definition of the problem, but who knows if that will be the final? So, I will plead with both parties to sheath their swords. Let’s come to the table and renegotiate and take it piecemeal by piecemeal. Let the lecturers accept certain positions of the government. The government can also accept certain positions of the lecturers and agree on time to meet the conditions. Although we know that government has said that several times to several administrations, but we still need to forge the country ahead. So, it is not as if we are happy with the strike, but these are the situations we have met and we pray that both parties can agree for our children to return to school.
Okuneh Arierhie Patrick, legal practitioner/ legislative aide to Deputy Senate President, Ovie Omo-Agege
Students losing academic
Like other students, it is disheartening to recount the losses caused by the six months strike by ASUU. We have continued to express serious concern about the situation. The long stay at home has inflicted permanent injury on students, apart from damage to the education system. ASUU strike has become regular occurrence for many years for public universities with prolonged academic years as the obvious effect. Universities should begin to seek for grants from private sector and international grants to assist in funding these universities. The ASUU strike has been tormenting me mentally and emotionally, especially as I see my counterparts in private institutions graduating and progressing with their lives. As a clinical year student, all my past efforts in clinical postings are thrown away because I have to repeat them on resumption. Imagine four months posting done prior to a six-month strike after which I have to repeat that same posting. It’s mentally depressing. Do I have to speak on the financial implications such as hostel rents wasted, traveling, foodstuffs thrown away and last but not the least, the time that can never be gotten back, especially in Nigeria where there are age limits to getting jobs? This is my 7th year in the university, for a six- year course but I’m just starting 500 level.
Philemon Kojo, UniAbuja student
Students getting pregnant, engaging in social vices
As a parent, I am heartbroken. I have a child who should be talking about graduating about now, but she has already lost two years. So, I am heartbroken, but the major issues need to be looked at critically beyond sentiments. ASUU have their standpoints and the FG is holding to its position. But somewhere along the line, we must marry both positions and get the best for the FG, ASUU and our children. Now, what is the core of this crisis? ASUU is saying they have a platform they designed locally and FG is saying no, we want to continue using the IPPIS. Fortunately, they struck a deal. The FG has said ‘okay, go with the platform you have designed’. What are the other contentions? ASUU is asking to be paid for the six months they have been on strike. Government is saying no. I read the minister say that FG is not going to pay ASUU. So, it is a “no work, no pay” kind of deal. Now, I listened to the ASUU President last week and he was saying that when they go back to school, they have a backlog to cover up. When compared to other organisations, it is not the same. For me, ASUU must begin to look beyond themselves, but the students they are there to serve. This is because the university system is about Nigeria. It is not about members of ASUU. So, much as they want to look at themselves, they must look at the students wasting away at home. I can guarantee you that by the time this is over, some of the female students will be pregnant and possibly may not go back to schools. We already have cases of some of our young men taking to armed robbery. It is not justified, but these are things happening. If they were in schools, they minds will be properly engaged and we will be able to avoid some of these things happening now. So, ASUU must begin to look beyond themselves, look beyond the government and say: ‘We have a nation to build, let’s make the necessary sacrifices as required and bring back our children to school and move forward’. That’s my take on the situation.
Viktor Oscar Ikiriko, Executive Director, Talk Africa With Toyin Foundation
Emoluments disheartening
We are all aware of the different issues faced by lecturers that always lead them to embark on strike as a last resort. Let’s talk about the emoluments, why should a professor be earning N400, 000 per month? That’s a joke. A fresh graduate in an oil company earn triple of that. And the professor that taught the engineer is earning peanuts. It’s an embarrassment. These are the things ASUU is talking about. Yet, the people on the government side are so insensitive that they ignore all these things. I mean, I read in the news last week that a minister was telling students to beat up lecturers. Like gang up and deal with your lecturers for keeping you at home. Is that the solution to the problem? Is that what is going to change the lecture room and toilets? That is outrageous for the minister to say that, but that is the system we find ourselves. So, ASUU is asking for reforms. And until we get these reforms, I mean something definite, something concrete, we are not calling off this strike. Take it or leave it.
Dr Michael Adeboye, lecturer
