The Minister of State for Education, Dr. Tanko Yusuf Sununu has appealed to students, parents, and lecturers in the nation’s institutions of higher learning to shun acts capable of disrupting the academic session as schools get set for resumption.
Director Press and Public Relations, Ministry of Education, Ben. Bem Goong disclosed this in a statement issued on Friday, September 22, 2023.
Dr. Sununu who made the appeal ahead of the resumption of academic activities in tertiary institutions said the show of restraint is in the interest of all stakeholders, and system stability.
He was speaking to newsmen when the leadership of the Congress of University Academics paid him a courtesy call.
The Minister noted that his Ministry is having constructive dialogue and consultation with stakeholders over the welfare of students, and staff as well as the provision of infrastructure in tertiary institutions.
Acknowledging that strikes and non-use of facilities could lead to rapid infrastructural decay, the Minister promised that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu would do everything humanly possible to avoid any situation that could lead to strikes.
Speaking earlier, the President of the Congress of University Academics, Comrade Niyi Sunmonu alerted the Minister, that there was the likelihood of student unrest occasioned by the new increase in school fees, which he said had the potential of disrupting academic activities and the school calendar.
The union also appealed to the government to look into ways of improving the condition of service of academic and non-academic staff of universities, which he said had deteriorated due to the fuel subsidy removal.
They reasoned that there was a need to revisit the issue of the 8-month salary arrears that arose from the last strike by the academic staff union of universities (ASUU), arguing that members of the Congress of University Academics did not go on strike.
It must be noted, however, that all academic activities in universities were grounded throughout the strike.
