Why ASUU (Academic Staff Union of Universities) Should Suspend the Strike
The present ongoing strike by the ASUU (Academic Staff Union of Universities), is something that seems to be somewhat necessary due to the new policy that the Federal Government has imposed on University bodies in the sense that the government wants to begin to control the salary system of the universities through the IPIS. This will mean that most lecturers might not be able to add to their basic income especially in the academia so this will in a way constrain the level to which they can spread their tentacles and broaden income. While this is a very serious reason why dust should be raised and a viable reason for the strike action presently, there are also reasons why ASUU should call off the strike.
The truth is that the negative impact of the strike is also serious and should be considered. Considering the fact that the pandemic has additionally crippled academic activities for some months, the strike seems overdue. Academic activities have already being interrupted, disrupted and affected by the Covid-19, therefore allowing the strike to keep lingering both on the part of the ASUU body and the government is quite inconsiderate of the negative effects that it is having. The two parties should quickly reach a compromise and ASUU should double efforts to end the strike action, by seeking and employing more potent strategies to make the government do something quick and favourable to meet their demands.
1. Reduced tempo of students
The tempo of students will likely have been affected by the ongoing strike, the tendency is that many of the students who were already flowing with the academic tide of activities in school before they strike set in and before the setting in of the pandemic as well will probably have lost a lot of motivation in that regards. You can imagine the level at which the tempo would have dropped and may not really be high as before, by the time students get back to school, they will have to start to adjust again and adapt to the academic rock and roll again because of the break that has been caused due to the issues of the strike and pandemic, so it is high time that ASUU called off the strike so that this probable continuous downward trend can be stopped.
2. Distortion of students’ plans
Also the ASUU needs to consider the fact that students also have their lives and plans and the time being wasted now has likely affected some people’s plans already. It is imperative to consider this, that students also have lives and time matters to them, while lecturers are fighting for their own right, the student’s times are being wasted and their plans are being distorted. Imagine when or a person is supposed to have graduated earlier but due to strike action he has to graduate later and probably the age is no longer favorable probably to get jobs, that is not good enough so it is high time that the bodies concerned find a quick way to call it off the strike as soon as possible. There is a lot of time being wasted times that would have been used, probably to round off things for students who might be rounding off, or to make advancement possible for those who are still in the process.
3. Idleness
Another high tendency due to this strike is that many students are likely to be bored and idle, and idleness is not good for youths at all because an idle hand is the devil’s workshop. It is therefore important that all necessary things are really put in place to ensure that the strike is called off as soon as possible, in order for students to get back to school on time and be well occupied. What if this kind of allowance afforded by them by the strike action lures more youths towards crime or involvement in bad things? The government and the ASUU body should consider it very critically that youths are the future of this country and should do all that is possible to give them the very best and avoid anything that may have the tendency to turn youths in a negative direction.
4. Increased cost
The costs that students will incur because of the strike action continuing should also be considered. Take for instance the rent fees, for those students who are living on campus in the school hostels, they may end up having to pay again if the rent expires and they still want to stay in the hostels. Those who are living off-campus will also have to renew their rent fees when it expires. Probably some of them have not lived in those rented rooms or places for some number of months now but they still have to renew the rent fees because time has elapsed, while academic activities still to a large extent have not been on. It is important that as to calls of the strike and allow the students to have value for their money.
5. Resumption in other universities
Also some universities are already resuming, which means they will soon commence their academic activities, if not already. If ASUU should continue with the strike then the likelihood is that many of the students attending universities affected by the ASUU strike will be lagging behind compared to their counterparts in other universities that have resumed already. It is particularly unfair that the students will be will have to be lagging behind their counterparts in other universities not because of unseriousness, protest or trouble from their side, but due to the in consideration of the government and the ASUU body as well. It is high time that ASUU called of the strike so that the academic calendar of the universities doesn’t get more badly affected and so that academic activities can continue as expected without students losing out.
6. Is it really working?
If the strike action is not as effective as it ought, then possibly it is not really hitting the government the way it is probably expected to do. Is it not therefore better to find a better means of handling the Nigerian government to take the ASUU more seriously? This is something that should be considered, and not to think that strike is the answer all the time.
While it is quite understandable that the lecturers are fighting for what may seem to be a good thing in some way, it is also very important that they take into cognizance the fact that they are wasting students’ time and students’ lives. They should double efforts as much as possible to get things sorted out on time. They should not just take it as that if government doesn’t respond to them, they will just continue with the strike indefinitely. They should look for means of putting the strike on hold, suspend it or at least reach a favourable compromise with the government. They should please put students into due consideration in this regards because the youths are the future of the nation and good education is very important to build that future. If value is placed on education in Nigeria, it should be shown by the concerned bodies by doing whatever is possible and taking whatever measures necessary to put an end to the strike as soon as possible.
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