Olufemi Ajadi Oguntoyinbo, the Gubernatorial candidate of the New Nigeria People’s Party, NNPP, in Ogun State, has expressed excitement over the decision of the Academic Staff Union of Universities, ASUU, to call off its eight months strike.
Ajadi made this remarks during his ongoing familiarization tours of Ogun neighborhoods, stressing that there couldn’t have been a more refreshing piece of information than the call off of the ASUU strike.
He recalled his appeals to the two sides early in the commencement of the strike, to find amicable solution to the grievances of the lecturers, saying that he was happy now that the strike had been called off.
“I am excited that the strike has been called off. You could imagine how much we would have lost in these past seven months or thereabout, so to me, it is a welcome development,” he said.
Ajadi who advised the federal government, through its agencies to ensure the terms of the agreement were adhered to, also appealed to the lecturers to do their best in ensuring no further break of the academic calendar
According to him, “It is painful to see students spending one, two, three more years for a course they should be done with in due time. The side effects can never be quantified.
“This calls for more proactive approach in teaching these students who must have become rusty staying at home”.
He said aside drastically affecting the students’ future, strikes usually exerts more pressure on parents and guardians, who have to cater for theirs wards, and also worry more in terms of their safety and wellbeing when they not in school.
He stressed that the increasing involvement of youths in crime, was traceable to constant breaks in academic calendar, amongst others, and that no responsible government should allow that to happen.
Referencing the proverb that an idle mind is the devil’s workshop, he said, youths are more vulnerable to negative tendencies when idle, and that this was worsened by peer pressure, amidst the challenging economy.
Ajadi recalled the past whereby agreements leading to the call-off of similar strikes had been breached advising both the ASSU and the federal government to avoid that happening this time round.
He particularly advised the students to redouble their efforts towards ensuring that they regained lost grounds, “It is a cardinal belief of the NNPP that the education and future of our youths should not be toyed with. We are all familiar with the saying that the youths are the future of tomorrow, and I believe that governments at all levels should align with the saying by implementing youth oriented programmes.
“That is why also, the NNPP is prioritizing youths, women and children in its manifesto. Part of our programme is to take adequate care of this category of people, once coming into power.”
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