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By Gabriel Dike
Worried by the prolonged strike by the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), the Special Adviser on Education (SAE) to Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, Mr. Tokunbo Wahab has appealed to the Federal Government and stakeholders to intervene and end the five-month old industrial action.
He made the appeal to ASUU and other sister unions on Monday when members of the Education Writers Association of Nigeria (EWAN) paid him a courtesy visit in his office at Alausa.
Wahab, who acknowledged EWAN as partners in the development of education, said ASUU strike has to be called off to enable the students go back for their studies that had been truncated for over five months.
According to him, ASUU needs to change its approach to strike as no nation can develop with its youths at home for months “because an idle hand is a devil’s workshop.”
His words: “We can’t continue to keep Nigerian youths at home for several months. No nation can develop with its active youths at home for over five months. The federal government and concerned stakeholders must act fast to end the prolonged strike.”
Wahab disclosed that because Lagos State University is not on strike, many applicants in the last Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) chose its three public universities.
He said the Lagos State University (LASU), Lagos State University of Science and Technology (LASUST) and the Lagos State University of Education (LASUED) are now oversubscribed in the 2022 UTME application.
“LASU and the two new universities are not on strike but we are worried that at the national level, students have been at home for months. Because of absence of strike in LASU and the new universities, we are currently over subscribed,” he stated.
According to him, by September, the first set of new students would be admitted and that the two universities would run 96 programmes with one particularly course over subscribed by 1,000 applicants.
Wahab revealed that Governor Sanwo-Olu is doing so much in education but his achievements is under reported and tasked EWAN to showcase the numerous achievements this administration has recorded.
Said he: “The governor is doing a lot in the sector but it is underreported. Education is critical to this administration and to develop the state, we invested huge fund in education. His investment in education is unprecedented.
“The state is heading towards a positive direction. In WASSCE, we moved from 38.79 percent to 79.64 per cent in terms of students’ performance.
“Our primary schools are doing well. The introduction of Ekoexcel has changed the landscape of education in the state.”
EWAN chairman, Mr. Mojeed Alabi, commended the SAE for assisting the governor to transform the tertiary institutions in the state and pledged the support to partner with the state government to promote education.
Alabi said; “As a product of popular struggle, you have demonstrated the your understanding of the need to prioritise the needs of the masses, a d we are happy that you have not derailed. We will fight when the need arises and when you are doing well we will commend you.
“Therefore, this token of presentation from us is an extension of our own hands of fellowship in honour of your humility and commitment to reposition education for good.”
