Strike: We Don’t Know What FG, ASUU Are Discussing — NANS President

The President of the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS), Usman Umar Barambu, has accused the federal government and the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) of keeping the students’ body in the dark over discussions between the duo on the ongoing strike.

ASUU has been on strike since February 14, 2022, during which a series of negotiation has been taking place between the academic union and the federal government.

On Monday, the Nigerian students led by NANS president protested against the prolonged strike action at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Ikeja, Lagos, amid downpour.

The students held banners bearing inscriptions such as: “No nation can develop without genuine commitment to education,” and “If you have money for election form, you can fund education.”

They caused traffic around the airport despite the presence of a combined team police and other security agencies.

Speaking on the Lagos protest and the ongoing strike on Arise TV, the NANS president, Barambu, on Tuesday said the association did not know what ASUU and the federal government had been discussing so far.

He said they had requested to join the negotiation to observe, but both ASUU and the federal government declined.

He said, “There is something I want to tell the whole country, that we as an organization doesn’t know what ASUU and the federal government are discussing.

“Because whenever we make a move that we want to be part of the negotiation, ASUU will say no, and the federal government will say no.

“So we don’t know what they have been discussing for the past let’s say 20 years. We don’t know what is going on.

“But we have placed a request to both ASUU and the federal government that we want to know what is going on. At least we should be part of the negotiation; not to negotiate but to observe, so that whenever there’s any problem we will know it’s either from the federal government’s side or the ASUU’s side. But as it is, it’s just a blind negotiation as far as we are concerned.”