Follow Us on Google
Worried by the state of tertiary education in Nigeria, social media sensation and humor merchant and thespian, Debo Adedayo, popularly referred to as Mr. Macaroni, has taken a swipe at student unionism in universities in Nigeria, saying that it has become too politicised to be relevant.
He made this observation in the face of the ongoing strike action embarked by the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) and what he referred to as the lack of non-representativeness of student unions in many tertiary institutions. Mr. Macaroni, a former law student at Lead City University, Ibadan, and president of the student union while studying at the Redeemer’s University, Ede, Osun State, stated that a more inclusive student union is pivotal in championing the interests and welfare of university students.
According to him, “Student unionists cannot relate with the pain that the students are going through. This is because many of those in student union governments are postgraduate students. Many of them are not undergraduates but are able to find themselves in such positions because of the politics. The passion will be missing. It is painful that I am no longer in school but have to create content and speak out on various social media platforms against ASUU strike. I ask myself: ‘where are the Nigerian students? What is going on?’ I don’t blame them because the people that are in charge will not necessarily know because unionism has become heavily politicised.
“At Lead City University, while we were in school and I was studying Law, we suddenly heard that the NUC Secretary went on national television that the Law program we were running was not accredited at that time, and that any student studying law at that time at Lead City would have no certificate. And then, we had a president of the Law Students’ Society. But we could not see any action. So, the students came around. Of course I was there and we stated to speak up. We demanded to see the Chancellor. As tension started to build, I remember there was a time we went at the middle of the night to show our displeasure; we punctured the tires of the school buses. This was because the school would bring in police men and bouncers into the school to restrict us.
“At Cotonou, I had a confrontation with a lecturer; I was studying law too. We were having a disagreement and he locked my shirt. I was finding it hard to breathe. I told him that if he refused to leave my shirt, I would lock his too. He did not leave it and so I locked his shirt. At Redeemer’s University, I did a write-up which caused a fracas.”
He gave these remarks while appearing on the Toyin Falola interview series held virtually on various social media platforms on Sunday, June 12, 2022. The Toyin Falola interviews interrogate some of Africa’s greatest scholars, intellectuals and leaders on problems and prospects of the African condition. Led by the renowned historian, Professor Toyin Falola, the panel had theatre teacher, playwright and critic, Professor Ahmed Yerima; film critic and gender scholar, Dr. (Mrs.) Olufadekemi Adagbada; and actor, commentator and film director, Yemi Shodimu. In the global audience were students, scholars, politicians, administrators, theatre practitioners, among several other.
Mr. Macaroni had prioritised education as fundamental to the creation of a Nigeria that is inclusive and prosperous. Asked by Shodimu what he would do if made Nigeria’s president, Mr. Macaroni answered: “People must be educated. A society that is not educated runs the risk of failure as we are currently in. It is this lack of education that our leaders from time immemorial have used as a weapon to seize and hold on to power all the time. Again, private universities should allow their students to go through the ultimate university learning experience. It is not the function of a university to train a child. It is not the duty of the university to train a student on morals.
“Then you create an enabling environment for all. This is a society that creates a level playing ground for every citizen to succeed. Nobody has a monopoly of success in such society. I would also love to address our constitution. I cannot begin to make sure the irregularities that we have in the 1999 constitution. There must be a complete overhaul.”
He equally spoke glowingly on the impact of his parents in making him the activist that he is presently. “As far as activism is concerned, my father’s writings, his stories, his personality helped me. As young as we were while growing up under him, we knew that my father had access to a lot of politicians. Many times we wondered why he would not make money despite knowing the big people in society. But because of the sacred profession that journalism is, integrity became important. This is one of the things that I took from him. Believe me when I say that I have had ridiculous offers from the high and the mighty. But because I learnt contentment from my father, you won’t find me bootlicking. My father was a broadcaster. In secondary, I was the head boy. But there was a time I was removed because I was spoke up against what I knew to be wrong as perpetrated by some of our teachers. As far back as secondary school, my parents never discouraged me from fighting for what is right. My parents would make their findings and if they discovered that I was right, they would advise me to be careful,” he recalled.
While thanking Professor Falola for the rare opportunity to feature on the programme, Mr. Macaroni promised to further push through his art forms and social media platforms better female inclusion, political mass mobilisaton, cultural reforms and Nigeria’s constitutional rebirth.
