Bishop Kukah Speaks Concerning ASUU Strike

Posted by Nwa Diokpa Latest Headlines, News Across Nigeria, News From The State Thursday, July 14th, 2022

(AFRICAN EXAMINER) – Matthew Kukah, Catholic bishop of Sokoto diocese, has berated stakeholders concerning the failure to address issues that have led to the long stay of strike by the Academic Staff Union of Universities.

The clergy made this known while speaking in his address at the signing of the peace accord by governorship candidates in Osun.

Speaking about the industrial action, Kukah stated that the ongoing strike is a “tragedy”, and keeping students out of the classrooms will have a negative effect on the country’s democracy.

“For us in Nigeria, the university students who count in millions can be classified as out-of-school children. This is unacceptable, especially as I said, that these things are happening in a democracy,” he said.

“Democracy has always given us an opportunity for negotiation, consensus, and so on. And it is a tragedy. The chairman of INEC himself is a professor; a lot of the election results are being announced by professors. It is, therefore, not acceptable that after so many months, our universities are still closed.

“We must understand that without the universities given opportunities for academic energy and analyses and theorising, it’s impossible for our democracy to grow.

“So, the most important thing therefore for political actors — and I’m speaking not only for the people of Osun, but I’m also speaking to the political actors in Nigeria — that it is time for us to take our responsibilities sufficiently seriously.”