President Goodluck Jonathan on Saturday said the hard stance of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) on the ongoing strike amounts to holding the students who are leaders of tomorrow hostage.
He made this position known at the commissioning of the College of Engineering Complex in the Afe Babalola University, Ado-Ekiti (ABUAD). The three-storey complex is named after him.
He however, pleaded with the striking teachers to consider te interest of the students and the nation at large by calling off the four months strike.
President Jonathan opined that four months is enough for ASUU to make their points known to the public, saying that they should return to the classrooms and give government time to address the infrastructure challenge in the nation’s Universities.
“I once again appeal to the entire membership of ASUU to pause and ponder on the adverse effect of their action on the future of the vibrant youths of this great nation.
“The collective destiny of tens of thousands of tomorrow’s leaders should not be held hostage to vagaries of labour disputes. As long as we are humans, as long as we are a developing society, this labour dispute must come up.
“I believe that labour has the right to go on strike, but in that strike, any action taken must be built on patriotic zeal. In as much as you can go on strike, you must be patriotic to our country.
No matter how and what you feel about Mr. President and the federal government, I plead with ASUU that for the sake of our students, they should resume classes.
“If it is a genuine strike, keeping students out of classrooms for almost four months, by that they have demonstrated to everybody that they have a case. And if the strike is motivated by some other interests, they have also achieved that by keeping students out of schools for more than a semester.
“I always say that even in the developed societies, we hear about labour dispute and there is no society, even the most developed that has provided the facilities for every worker.
“Our security services, the Police, the Armed Forces, Navy, Air Force and para-military, intelligent services are also operating in an environment that is not the best.
“If all of us should go on long strike because our environment is not optimum, then, definitely we can never get the Nigeria of our dream. So, let me use this unique opportunity that I am interfacing with our future leaders, our students, to plead with ASUU members”.
He said “it is unacceptable that students of public institutions are kept for extra one or two years” while students of private universities obtain their Degrees at the appropriate time.
The President commended the founder of ABUAD, Chief Afe Babalola (SAN) for investing in education, adding that he was humbled by his decision to name the College of engineering after him.
His words, “It is often said that great minds live great history behind them and this. History is built on a very great vision.
“The vision of Aare Afe babalola founder of this promising institution is a noble one, describing him as “unassailable character, profound vision, an epitome of the highest ideals and a quintessential Nigerian patriot”.
The founder of the University, Afe Babalola, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) said the University is worth N60 billion of private investments.
According to him, over 4000 students from 36 States of Nigeria and FCT, the institution is the second best private university in the country and the 14th best among all public and private universities in Nigerian.
He also used the occasion to appeal to President Jonathan to intervene in the development of the Ekiti Airport. He lamented that in spite of the over N600 million approved by the federal government for the commencement of the project in 2011, development is yet to commence.
Present at the event were host Governor Kayode Fayemi as well as Governors Olusegun Mimiko of Ondo, Ramalan Yero of Kaduna and Ibrahim Dankwambo of Gombe.
