With uncertainty still beclouding their future as the ongoing ASUU strike enters day 152, Nigerian undergraduates have taken to Twitter to bemoan their fate.
With the hope of an end to the four-month-old strike deferred, following the death of one the founding members of ASUU, Prof. Festus Iyayi, in a car crash, a majority of the students have become more confused.
For now, it also appears that the don’s death has taken the union a few steps back, so much that it no longer appears to be in a haste to return to classrooms.
Following Iyayi’s death, ASUU was forced to call off a meeting of its general assembly in Kano, which was to consider a new offer being proposed by the federal government.
Even the report that The Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps had embarked on a seven-day fasting and prayer for an end to the lingering crisis has been greeted with mixed feelings.
Some students appear to have fully adjusted to the ongoing condition, finding time to create humour from the happenstances. It is therefore not surprising to see them substitute their real names for monikers like Iyawo Asuu and Asuu President, on their Twitter handles.
A certain Omonijoabiodun, on Twitter, is just one out of the many undergraduates, unhappy about the strike.
His tweet read, “Nigerian university students are getting frustrated over the prolonged ASUU strike.”
Mr. Beluchi, on the other hand, questioned the Federal Government’s position on the strike. His tweet read, “How can a graduate, a father, a president voted into power by his people be so insensitive to the agony caused by the ASUU strike?”
@shogolomo simply reminded employers of labour to reconsider some of their strict requirements as a result of the strike. He wrote, “I hope an organisation like Access Bank looking for under- 26yrs are taking note of the longevity of this ASUU strike.”
@Omojuwa also said, “When GEJ had issues with ASUU and G7 governors, who was he desperate to settle with? Aren’t Nigerian students more than governors?”
That the students appear to be singing discordant tunes does not come as a surprise as the presumed umbrella body of Nigerian Students, the National Association of Nigerian Students, has yet to be assertive on the issue.
What’s more? The body which once represented the aspirations and yearnings of Nigerian students has no active presence on Twitter. It is also saddening to note that the students’ body recently impeached its president, Yinka Gbadebo, in September at the peak of the ASUU strike, replacing him with the vice-president, Jubril Ahmed.
Its Twitter account @TheNewNANS is practically asleep. The last tweet was posted on July 3, two days after the commencement of the strike. This, among other issues, has further dampened the undergraduates’ confidence in the body.
Crying out in a series of tweet, Chinedu Egwunye wrote, “Oh Lord, I wish I was on the board of the National Association of Nigerian Students. It’s almost like they are mute.”
Also echoing Egwunye, another wrote, “Whatever happened to the National Association of Nigerian Students? This is the perfect opportunity to launch an offensive against ASUU. When will NANS vomit the rot they have eaten and declare that they have had enough? Do they not care at all?”
Celebrities, including Okey Bakassi, have not been left out in the ongoing Twitter debate on ASUU. One of his tweets read, “ASUU would have made sense if it was a Nollywood movie as it is full of suspense and intrigues. You can’t even predict the next stage or how it will end.”
No comments:
Post a Comment