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After eight months of staying at home, students unions of universities in the South West, on Thursday, gave seven days ultimatum to the Federal Government to end the ongoing ASUU strike or face aggressive nationwide protest.
Addressing a press conference at the University of Ibadan, the Presidents of Students Union Government of universities in the South West, said the agitation will feature mass mobilisation of students in protests and mass actions that will surpass the #EndSARS protests.
Decrying the eight months deadlock between the Federal Government and ASUU, students said they are the ones bearing the brunt, and called for a compromise between the two parties to save the their future.
Speaking on behalf of all the schools, the Student Union President, Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta, Mr Oloyede Abiodun bemoaned the nonchalant posture of the Federal Government towards the education sector.
He noted that the struggle of ASUU for the revitalisation of universities, improvement in infrastructure and regulation of payment of salaries was for the betterment of universities and should not be undermined by the government. Oloyede added that Nigerian universities were bedeviled with poor infrastructure; inadequate classrooms; polluted learning environment and lack of quality teachers, and asked the government to increase its budgetary funding to the education sector.
The students also lamented the incessant ASUU strikes, saying it is making them umable to pursue scholarships; extending students’ years in school and disrupting means of livelihood of students doing business in the schools’ environment.
Oloyede urged the Federal Government to set up a committee of all student union leaders across the country and government representatives to handle students welfare.
Other SUG Presidents at the press conference include Akeju Olusegun, University of Ibadan; Olabiyi Olamide, Ladoke Akintola University of Technology, Ogbomoso; Wisdom Okoko, University of Ilorin; Awoyemi Michael, Olabisi Onabanjo University, Ago-Iwoye; Soneye Abdul-Azeez, Tai Solarin University of Education, Ijebu-Ode.