Education

ASUU strike: NANS calls on states to reopen varsities

The National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) has called on state governments to deploy all necessary measures to ensure the resumption of academic activities on campuses of their universities.

NANS made the call via a statement issued by its president, Sunday Asefon, on Thursday.

Asefon promised to support the states that are willing to compel striking state university lecturers to resume work, saying state-owned universities have no justification for joining the strike.

The students’ leader further chided state governments whose tertiary institutions participate in the ongoing strike by the university lecturers.

He added that Nigerian students heed the advice credited to the Minister of Education, Adamu Adamu, to claim liabilities suffered as a result of the industrial action embarked upon by the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU).

“Perhaps the only thing Malam Adamu Adamu has gotten right since he became a Minister is the fact that Nigerian students needed to be compensated for their wasted time, opportunities, and resources.

“However, the Minister was clever by half by suggesting ASUU should be held liable for the liabilities. ASUU is neither the proprietor of our tertiary institutions nor the beneficiary of the exorbitant fees we pay across our tertiary institutions in Nigeria.

“It is an abuse of intellect to suggest that students should sue employees for protesting bad working conditions and not the employer who is the proprietor of our schools and the beneficiary of the exorbitant school fees we pay.

“Since Nigerian students do not think like the Minister, and can separate what is right from wrong, we would yield the advice of the minister, and explore legal windows for compensation of our students for numerous liabilities suffered as a result of the incessant and prolonged ASUU strike,” Asefon said.

The Star