ASUU strike: Group plans mass rally against

A pro- labour civil coalition, the Joint
Action Front (JAF ), yesterday urged
Nigerians to prepare for a mass rally it
is planning to compel the Federal
Government to release funds for the
implementation of the agreement it
reached with the striking university
lecturers.
JAF said with millions of students
currently idle at home because of the
ongoing strike of the Academic Staff
Union of Universities (ASUU ), coupled
with the reluctance of the President
Goodluck Jonathan administration to
accede to the lecturers’ demand , the
situation may linger .
The solution, he said, lies in compelling
the government to do the right thing
through a “ mass action ”.
Addressing reporters in Abeokuta, the
Ogun State capital , JAF’ s Secretary
Comrade Abiodun Aremu said the
government should be held responsible
for the spate of strikes in the nation’ s
education sector .
He urged Nigerians to join the mass
mobilisation to “ save public education”
in the country .
Aremu said : “JAF is committed to the
nationwide , zonal and state protests
until the government is compelled to
give public education the priority
attention it deserves .
“ We urge students and workers in
formal and informal sectors , parents
and pro-people organisations across the
country to join the mass mobilisation to
save public education .
“ Students from the universities have
been at home since July 1 because of
the ASUU strike. For three months,
polytechnic students had their academic
calendar disrupted for similar reasons .
“ The Colleges of Education Academic
Staff Union ( COEASU) , just last week ,
had a warning strike. All these have
implication for disruption of the
academic calendars , falling standards of
education at all levels, a high level of
general insecurity and a bleak future for
the current generation and the Nigerian
child . ”
The media briefing was attended by
representatives of ASUU, students , civil
society organisations, among others .
The JAF’ s secretary said the mass protest
to sensitise Nigerians to the dangers in
the gradual destruction of the
educational sector by the Federal
Government will hold in Abeokuta on
Thursday.
Similar protests will later hold in Kano ,
Aremu said .
He added : “Except we mobilise Nigerians
to resist the government , to compel the
government to bring the money , the
government will not budge in its
unwillingness or reluctance to fund
education sector adequately in Nigeria .”