Nigeria’s ruling class has no concern for education, says ASUU

President of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), Prof. Biodun Ogunyemi, says the ruling class in Nigeria had no concern for the education of the poor.

Ogunyemi disclosed this while appearing on TVC News breakfast show monitored by National Daily on Tuesday.

He regretted the attitude of government to the university lecturers’ demands, saying that letters notifying government of the strike, which were submitted to the education and labour ministries on Nov. 5, had not been replied.

He accused the political class of strangling primary and secondary education in Nigeria, saying that 24 states had failed to access the Universal Basic Education Commission funds for 2018.

According to him, that has left UBEC with more than N60 billion that states have yet to access.

Ogunyemi observed that the federal government, which had consistently allocated seven per cent to education in the last two years, was not sincere in the claim that it was declaring a state of emergency in the education sector.

ASUU which resumed strike on November had resolved to remain at home until their demands, which include proper funding of the universities, are met.

Other demands included the payment of full salaries by state-owned universities, payment of earned academic allowances, among others.

Meanwhile, Kayode Fayemi, governor of Ekiti state, on Tuesday said the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has no reason to have embarked on strike.

Speaking in Paris during President Muhammadu Buhari’s interactive session with Nigerians living in France, Fayemi said ASUU cannot have all its demands met “when you have competing needs”.

He argued that no government has done more for the union than the Buhari administration.

“I do not think that ASUU on its own strength can argue that government has not done well. There is hardly any institution in Nigeria today, including states universities that have not had the benefit of intervention,” Fayemi said.

“It is either the government is building an auditorium or rehabilitating a laboratory, or improving on students hostels in virtually all the universities as I speak to you. That’s what TETFUND does via their intervention funds. That again is not the complete solution.