President Muhammadu Buhari on Monday berated the striking Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) for its alleged adamant in calling off the lingering strike, saying enough is enough for keeping students at home.
President Buhari, who said he hoped ASUU would sympathise with the people on the prolonged strike, advised the university lecturers not to hurt the next generation for goodness sake.
The President, who stated this when he received some governors of the All Progressives Congress (APC), legislators and political leaders at his residence in Daura, Katsina State, called on ASUU, to reconsider its position on the prolonged strike, expressing worry that the hiatus will have generational consequences on families, the educational system and future development of the country.
The President, said the strike had already taken a toll on the psychology of parents, students and other stakeholders, throwing up many moral issues that already beg for attention.
He noted that the future of the country rests on the quality of educational institutions and education, while assuring that the government understands their position, and negotiations should continue, with students in lecture halls.
A statement issued by the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, Mallam Garba Shehu, was quoted as saying, “We hope that ASUU will sympathise with the people on the prolonged strike. Truly, enough is enough for keeping students at home. Don’t hurt the next generation for goodness sake.”
The President called on all well meaning Nigerians, particularly those close to the leaders and members of the association, to intervene in persuading the lecturers to reconsider their position, and the ripple effect on an entire generation and the nation.
He said students from Nigerian universities will be faced with the challenge of competing with others in a highly connected and technology-driven work space, and keeping them at home only deprives them of time, skill and opportunities to be relevant on the global stage.
According to him, “Colonial type education was geared towards producing workers in government. Those jobs are no longer there. Our young people should get education to prepare them for self-employment. Now education is for the sake of education.
“Through technology we are much more efficient. We should encourage our children to get education, not only to look for government jobs.”
President Buhari said resources should be channeled more into building infrastructure and operations of the health and educational sector, not to expand the bureaucracy to create job opportunities.
“By this time next year, I would have made the most out of the two terms, and the remaining months I will do my best,” the President noted.
He urged those in political positions and places of privilege to be mindful in helping the many Nigerians that were looking for opportunities.
“If you are greedy, you won’t look around to see what is happening with those who are less endowed,’’ he said.
The President told the governors and political leaders that he had not been to his house in Daura for close to a year due to the demands of office.
“The observation that I abandoned my base was made by the Emir of Daura, Dr Faruk Umar Faruk, at the eid prayer ground. He held the microphone and told everyone that the last time I was in Daura was during the Eid-el-Kabir of 2021,” he added.
President Buhari said he would retire to Daura, not Kaduna, where he had a better house.
“In ten to eleven months time, I will come here. I have a better house in Kaduna, but it is too close to Abuja,’’ he said.
The President explained that the schedule of work was much, saying he recently had to sympathise with the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Geoffrey Onyema, who had to be away most of the time from his family.
