Just yesterday in its usual fashion, the Academic Staff Union of Universities called off it’s strike conditionally, making students hang on in terms of their fate on when next we would have a strike action again, afterall it’s a reoccurring decimal.

For Varsities that have been running during the strike , they are at the risk of graduating quarter-baked students.

For a country that has highlighted several visions and hopes , it is very appalling that education suffers with little or no concern.

For a developing country like Nigeria, the dreams of the Country without a vibrant educational system remains very hard to achieve .

Nigeria has the dream to become the next China,United States of America and United Kingdom but the engine room remains very obsolete. Our Technical schools are nothing to write home about , our polytechnics and Universities are in shambles , our colleges of Education are glorified secondary schools . Innovations do not come out of ignorance but how much we have invested in the knowledge of people.

For Nigeria to work,our leaders must look beyond sending their kids to foreign Universities and celebrating it on social media to understanding the fact Nigeria remains our home to treasure.

Many of our leaders promise us that Nigeria will be great again but what can be great about a country that takes it classroom with levity?

The advent of Technology has made development something which requires knowledge and adequate skills, that which the successive government has failed to address.

When the best Universities or Technical schools cannot boast of facilities, we as a Nation are in a big dilemma.

The corruption ravaging the Nigerian educational systems where students are trained first-hand on corruption practices while on Campus must stop.

Many of leaders of Nigeria today started building themselves from Campus and the reflection of what they have is what they have learnt while in the schooling system.

Recently, a students Union of one of Nigeria’s prominent Universities got suspended for fighting over money that was not up to two million Naira , the system started getting wrong from the Higher institutions.

Nigeria cannot be China by wishing so,Nigeria cannot be productive by holding press conferences, unemployment rate in Nigeria cannot be reduced by drawing up blueprint every time.

We need an educational system that meets up the reality of today. We need vibrant unions on campuses , we need a relaxed system of Education.

What do you say about a country that prioritises students knowledge, makes learning environment very accommodative, encourages research and promotes innovation, how can we not say such a country will develop?

For a Nigeria whose Varsities take in students that over-burden learning facilities, whose student rights are barely respected , where corruption is no longer a thing to hide, what manner of future are we building for our country?

I posit that the constant strike by Unions although aimed at making things better keeps making mockery of the collective resolve of a Country that wishes to grow.

We cannot keep watching brains fade away while we do nothing about it.

The federal ,state government must wake up to its responsibilities and see education as the major instrument to national development and growth.

The National Association of Nigerian Students must grow from being a body that threatens to a body that genuinely represents the interest of Nigerian Students .

The body of Nigerian Students have overtime being enmeshed in bribery and scandals , that must stop.

I also wish to state that people should not say United States citizens do not go the University .

That is not relevant so much ,their colleges even are better than some of our Universities , moreover are they developing as a Country or more advanced that our own dear native land?

Education must be seen as a responsibility for all and should be taken not with a playful hand.



Aroghalu Chidozie Law

Writes from Abuja.