ASUU Strike: Nigerian Students Threaten To Stop Presidential Primaries

National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) has threatened to frustrate all political gatherings by the two major parties and activities leading to the selection of candidates if the ongoing strike by the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) is not called off.

The association condemned politicians for showing no concern for the plight of the students but being busy pursuing their “selfish and inordinate ambitions” to become the next president while students stay at home with no solution in sight.

“Let me say without mincing words, the two major political parties (APC and PDP) should forget any political gathering in Abuja or elsewhere except there is a solution to the lingering ASUU strike. We are surprised by their effrontery and total disrespect to the Nigerian people for having the courage to even mute the idea of contesting talk less of picking up the N100 million presidential forms while students languish at home because of their collective failures,” the association said in a statement on Sunday.

“If we remain on strike, they should just forget it. Because they know our plans and how fearless we are while pursuing the interest of the students. We are aware they have bought some acclaimed student leaders with no conscience and no honour to divide us,” the statement added.

They tasked the government and the politicians, to either resolve the ASUU crisis or give direct orders to the security operatives to shoot us during party conventions to select presidential candidates.

The association further noted that it has given mediators time to prevail on the Federal Government to resolve issues with ASUU and ensure students resume to their different campuses but “it seems all mediation failed or failing as the case may be.”

“We have also in the past weeks seen those saddled with responsibility in the education sector and those saddled with responsibilities of resolving labour crisis declaring interest to contest for the seat of the president come 2023,” the association said.

It further alleged that some students have been compromised, adding “we will fish out and punish such students.

“Our advice is very simple, no matter how much any acclaimed student leaders have been paid by their paymaster, they should return it immediately because the wrath of the students won’t spare them even if they enter the dungeon to sow the seed of disunity to fulfil the task given them by their paymaster. We will fish them out and make them pay for their betrayal and atrocities against the collective interest of the students we all swore to protect.

“If the politicians holding the trust of the country are only concerned about the next election, we are more concerned about the next generation and if there is no next generation, elections will soon go into extinction.

End ASUU strike now or forget about party primaries,” the statement further read.

It is almost three months since ASUU embarked on strike. The union had on March 14, at the expiration of its four-week warning strike which it declared on February 14, extended the strike by two months. ASUU has vowed to continue the strike until all its demands are met.