Members of the National Association
of Parents Teachers Association,
South West chapter, have threatened
to embark on hunger strike if the
Federal Government and Academic
Staff Union of Universities (ASUU)
failed to reconcile their differences
soonest.
Chairman of the association, Julius
Olaribigbe, after inauguration of new
executives of the Osun State chapter
of the body in Osogbo, told newsmen
that the current face-off between the
Federal Government and ASUU was
embarrassing to the nation.
Lecturers in public universities have
begun an indefinite strike since July 1
over non-implementation of an
agreement they reached with the
Federal Government in 2009.
The universities have remained shut
to academic programmes since then.
And while the industrial dispute
lingers, the Federal Government gave
members of ASUU up till Monday
next week to resume for work or
consider themselves sacked, an
ultimatum the ASUU described as
laughable.
But the PTA in the south West warned
that “the over two million parents
across the 36 states of the Federal
Republic of Nigeria will embark on a
national hunger strike if this situation
should continue”.
Olaribigbe believes that the Federal
Government needs to accede to ASUU
demands in the interest of the
students who are the country’s future
leaders.
He appealed to President Goodluck
Jonathan to constitute a committee
to dialogue with ASUU to end the
ongoing face-off between the two
parties.
“When two elephants fight, the grass
will definitely suffer. This time
around, it is the parents that are
suffering. We are left with no other
option than to appeal to the two
parties to see reasons why the strike
should end. But if the strike persists,
we shall embark on hunger strike,” he
added.
Olaribigbe blamed the Federal
Government for allowing the strike to
reach the present level, stressing that
government has a duty to ensure
qualitative university education for all
Nigerian children.
Also on Thursday, Presiding Bishop of
Victory International Church, Taiwo
Adelakun, called on government to
back down from its high horse and
embrace diplomacy rather than the
military approach towards resolving
the crisis.
Adelakun spoke at the press briefing
at Rehoboth Cathedral of the Church
at Oluyole Estate, Ibadan, to formally
unveil the 2013 Rehoboth Festival
holding next week under the theme,
‘The Lord of Host’.
The clergyman, who announced that
the proposed Dominion University to
be owned by the Church would take
off as soon it receives the final nod
from the National Universities
Commission (NUC), lamented that
the continued closure of the nation’s
universities due to the ASUU strike
had compounded the problem in the
sector.
According to him, “there is a problem
in the sector already and the non-
resolution of the crisis is
compounding the problem and this
calls for the necessity for the two
parties to come to terms on the need
to resolve the matter in the interest of
the country”.
Chairman of ASUU, Institute of
Agricultural Research and Training
(IAR&T) of the Obafemi Awolowo
University (OAU) chapter,
Olufunmilayo Ande, also spoke on
Thursday, appealing to President
Goodluck Jonathan not to allow
some of those working with him to
mislead him to drag Nigeria back to
the dark days of “Abacha regime.”
The don gave the advice while
addressing members of the IAR&T
ASUU after a procession organised to
honour former National President of
the union, late Professor Festus Iyayi,
who died recently in a motor accident
along Lokoja-Abuja road.
Ande, the union’s Deputy Chairman,
Adesina Tiamiyu, and Secretary, J.
Olaide Saka, had led scores of the
union members in the procession,
after which they were addressed by
the Chairman and the institute’s
Executive-Director, James Alabi
Adediran, who described Iyayi’s
death as a great loss to Nigeria.
The ASUU chairman argued that the
struggle embarked upon by the union
is a struggle to liberate the country’s
public universities and the entire
education sector, urging Jonathan to
immediately honour government’s
agreement with the union.
Ande said since Nigeria currently
claims to be running a democracy,
the President should not adopt threat
to force the striking ASUU members
to go back to the classroom without
the guarantee that the agreement
reached with them will be honoured.
Academic staff at the Edo State
owned Ambrose Alli University (AAU),
Ekpoma, on their part also on
Thursday vowed to continue with the
strike until government agreed to fulfil
all the things that ASSU is asking for.
The lecturers also called for the
immediate sack of Supervising
Minister of Education, Nyesom Wike,
over what they described as
incompetence.
They said Wike lacked the intellectual
capabilities and competence to
handle the education system in the
country.
They made their position known in a
communiqué after an emergency
meeting on Thursday.
The communiqué signed by Chairman
and the Secretary of ASUU-AAU
chapter, Fred Esumeh and S.
Omoikhoje, respectively, described
the ultimatum by the Federal
Government as unfortunate and ill
conceived in a democratic rule.
http://dailyindependentnig.com/2013/12/parents-threaten-hunger-strike-ASUU/

Hunger strike keeee,mum don't join them oooooo,me I no get money for cow ooooooo....

Wetin be their own even FG and ASUU go don chop like 3 times dis morning,i trust my papa sha he go don chop dis morning sef