Parents, Students Commend ASUU for Calling off Strike

  • NANS asks FG to meet terms of agreement

University students have expressed happiness over the decision by Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) to call off its five-weeks old strike.

Some of the students told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Yenagoa tuesday that they were glad to hear that the union had called off their strike.

ASUU on Monday suspended its five-week old strike following a meeting with the federal government’s delegation.

Francis Alazial, a final year student of Niger Delta University (NDU) Amasomma, said he was short of words to express his happiness over the call off.

He said: “I cannot express my joy since I heard the news that ASUU had called off the strike.
“I am in my final year and about to finish my semester examination when lecturers commenced the strike.”

Another 300 level student of NDU, Paul Semion, described ASUU decision as a welcome development, saying students would now resume normal academic activities from Wednesday.

He, however, called on the federal government to keep to the agreements reached between it and the lecturers so as not to disrupt academic activities in universities again.

“The federal government should try as much as possible to keep to the promises reached to ensure uninterrupted academic activities in future,” he added.

Similarly, most of the parents who spoke with journalists on the issue expressed gratitude to ASUU and government for making it possible for academic activities to resume.

They, however, advised lecturers to always go for dialogue in resolving dispute rather than resorting to strike.

Meanwhile, the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) has commended the federal government and ASUU for resolving their stand-off.

NANS’ President, Mr Chinonso Obasi, in a statement tuesday in Abuja, said suspending the strike had shown dialogue was the best way of settling industrial disputes.

Prof. Biodun Ogunyemi, ASUU President, had said the union decided to conditionally suspend the strike in view of the timeline of October 2017 for the implementation of the signed agreement.
Obasi said suspending the strike was a welcome development that would bring relieve not only to the students but also their parents.

He called on the federal government to equally demonstrate a sense of responsibility and endeavour to comply with the agreements reached in order to avert another level of face-off with ASUU in the near future.

“The falling standard of education and its effect on the nation’s future human capital is regrettable.

“The federal government should prioritise investment in the education sector for the benefit of the nation.

“A situation where students are compelled to spend longer time than necessary for a particular course of study on an account of incessant strikes is counter-productive,” he said.

He said that students were always at the receiving end of strikes, hence the need for ASUU to always consult students’ leadership as critical stakeholders before declaring or proceeding on strike in the future.

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