ASUU Strike: It’s Not Good We Are Talking About Elections When Schools Are Closed – Peter Obi

Posted by Nwa Diokpa Featured, Latest Headlines, News Across Nigeria, News From The State Thursday, May 5th, 2022

(AFRICAN EXAMINER) – Former Anambra State governor and presidential hopeful on the platform of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), has stated that it is a sad development that federal universities are on strike in a period politicians are campaigning for the 2023 elections.

Obi disclosed this on Wednesday when he appeared as a guest on the Berekete family radio in Abuja.

African Examiner recalls that the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) is presently on strike concerning the federal government’s failure to honour an agreement on issues concerning funding universities, as well as salaries and allowances of lecturers.

According to Obi, it is only in Nigeria that a situation in which students are not attending classes and election campaigns are ongoing.

“It is very sad. It is intolerable that schools are closed and we are campaigning and we are even talking about elections. It would never happen in any other country except Nigeria,” he said.

“Education is the most important investment, a nation can do for its citizens, which we are playing with here.

“The scourge of this problem is because we have an uncaring government. The agreement was made in 2009 that they will give universities N1 trillion to renovate universities, and that they will pay lecturers’ allowances.

“If they were to be paying N100 million yearly, the payment would have been paid in full. Even N50 million yearly would have done it to some extent.”

He further stated that the ASUU strike is a pointer to the inability of the government to keep to agreements.

“The problem is the government made empty promises. So, this made everyone fight. Money collected from presidential aspirants can feed ASUU’s demands,” he added.

Obi stated that if he is elected to rule the country, he will make primary and secondary education free, but not for tertiary level.

“I won’t make tertiary education free. Primary and secondary will be free, but we must find a way to fund tertiary education,” he said.