ASUU: Public Varsities Will Die Like Nigerian Airways If We Succumb To FG

The President of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), Prof Emmanuel Osodeke, has asked why the government cannot use the $23 million Sani Abacha loot scheduled for repatriation from the United States to solve the ongoing strike by university lecturers.

Osodeke accused the FG of not prioritizing the education sector, noting that such funds could have been used to address part of ASUU’s problems so university students who have been at home for the past six months due to the strike can return to school.

The ASUU President said this on Wednesday during an interview with AIT, monitored by THE WHISTLER.

“The same way our founding fathers used the government’s funds for the people, we should ask the current government to use our funds for the people.

“Two days ago I read that Nigeria is getting back some Abacha looted funds and I thought this would have been an opportunity for the Government to say ‘let’s spend this money on education where we have a crisis currently’ but they want to use it to do roads that are already under construction. There is no priority for Education,” he said.

Speaking on reactions from Nigerians who refer to ASUU as recalcitrant and unyielding in their demands, the ASUU President defended the union and its stance, saying that they are fighting to preserve the existence of public universities and improve their quality for children of the ordinary Nigerians who cannot afford to pay the high fees of private universities.

“Do we still have public primary and secondary schools? They are all gone, but as I speak to you today even with the so-called recalcitrance of ASUU, we still have 95% of Nigerian students in Federal Universities and only about 5% in private, because of these our struggles.

“Any day we listen to people who support the idea that ASUU is recalcitrant, in the next four or five years our public universities will end up in the same condition as the public primary and secondary schools. They will be the same way as the old NEPA, Nigerian Airways, Nigerian Railway, Nigerian Shipping Line, and NITEL. That’s exactly what would happen and we won’t allow it because the moment that happens, the children of the ordinary Nigerians, who we are fighting for, would be forced out of school,” he explained.

He bemoaned the fact that of the meagre funds generated internally in Federal Universities, Vice Chancellors are still required to remit 26% to the Federation’s account.

“In the current University system, the government still insists on collecting 26% of the internally generated funds and remitting it into the Federation account. Should Universities be fund-generating organizations? They require VCs to remit 26% of the money they collect from students for things like ID cards or health to the Federation account.

“Is there any University in the world where Universities pay money into the Federation account? Are Universities revenue generating agencies? That is just the crisis of oppression that we have in the Nigerian Education system”, he said.

THE WHISTLER reported that the American Government on Tuesday agreed to repatriate over $23 million looted by the late Head of State, Sani Abacha, to Nigeria.

The Nigerian Government said it plans to invest the money in three ongoing projects, including the ongoing Abuja-Kaduna road and the 2nd Niger Bridge.

In May 2020, the FG confirmed the receipt of $311,797,866.11 of looted Abacha funds in the United States and the Bailiwick of Jersey.