The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) yesterday condemned what it called the inept attitude of the Jonathan administration to curtail the activities of Boko Haram and other criminal vices across the country.
Arising from its National Executive Council meeting, held at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka, ASUU President, Dr. Nasir F. Isa, said the insecurity problem in Nigeria was an expression of the people's anger over the high level of injustice against the masses, hunger, deprivation and failure of government to tackle corruption squarely.
Addressing newsmen at the end of the NEC meeting, Isa, with the union's immediate past president, Prof. Ukachukwu Awuzie, challenged governments at all levels to make the security and welfare of the citizens their priority, regretting that in spite of the huge budgetary allocation to security, bombings, kidnappings and armed robbery had become a daily occurrence.
The union also noted that the spiral increase in the prices of essential commodities, low standard of living and joblessness had pushed many citizens into criminal activities.
It said: "The spate of insecurity in the country has continued unabated. On daily basis, the newsstands are awash with reports of bombings, kidnappings, assassinations, armed robberies, arson, and related acts of violence perpetrated against the Nigerian people and foreigners alike.
"There are also reports of spiral inflation and phenomenal increase in commodity prices, leading to food insecurity and reduction in standard of living across the country.
"Joblessness, homelessness, and decreasing access to education and other indices of underdevelopment now characterize our national life."
Expressing worry that crime and corruption were assuming new dimension in the country, the union said, "Frightening dimension of insecurity today is the increasing phenomenon of crude oil theft", adding that "about 50 percent of Nigeria's total production is pilfered".
ASUU condemned proposals for a Sovereign National Conference, maintaining that what the country needed was a change of attitude on the part of its leaders.
According to it, "Sovereign National Conference has never worked anywhere. The recent example is that of Sudan, even though the South Sudan has gained independence, peace has not returned in that place; so the fundamental issues of corruption and looting of public fund should be addressed.
"There is high level of injustice in the country; a situation where somebody who steals N1,000 is sentenced to one year imprisonment and then a politician steals billions of naira and, through plea bargaining, he is sentenced to six months imprisonment is not acceptable to the people.
"People are noting these injustices in the land and they express their disaffection in negative ways."
Isa, however, challenged the federal government on the full implementation of the 2012 budget stressing that the politicisation of the budget would not augur well for the country.
He added: "I don't want to say whether President Jonathan should be impeached or not, but ASUU demands that the budget should be fully implemented. We recall that this controversy has become perennial and in fact a yearly affair.
"To this end, the union condemns the unnecessary politicisation of the budget implementation and calls on the Federal Executive Council and National Assembly to get their acts together and do all that it takes to enhance the economic well-being of the citizenry on a sustainable basis."
Citing the Rivers State University of Science and Technology (RSUST) as an example, the union condemned what it described as "undue interference of state governors in state university administration".
It also faulted the renaming of universities in the country as well as visit of the Independent Corrupt Practices Commission (ICPC) to the University of Nigeria and other universities in the country, describing it as illegal.
- Ikhide
Stalk my blog at http://www.xokigbo.com/
Follow me on Twitter: @ikhide
Join me on Facebook: www.facebook.com/ikhide
No comments:
Post a Comment