The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Chinonso Obasi

  • NANS urges FG to intervene in ASUU strike

    NANS urges FG to intervene in ASUU strike

    The National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) has called on the Federal Government to look into the plight of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) to avert the indefinite strike.

    Mr Chinonso Obasi, National President, NANS made the call in a statement made available to newsmen in Abuja on Monday.

    “It is with deep pain and regret that NANS received the news of another indefinite strike by ASUU over the Federal Government’s indifference to their plight.

    “Nigerian students sees the break down in negotiations as a further proof that political leaders don’t care about their future.

    “Consequently, we wish to call on the Federal Government to do all it can to get ASUU back to the classrooms.

    “The demands of ASUU are reasonable and touch on the integrity of government, especially in the light of the fight against corruption,” he said.

    According to him, NANS finds it hard to believe that past governments would fail to honour agreements with members of ASUU for more than seven years.

    Obasi, however, said the association in the light of the foregoing gave the Federal Government 21 days to resolve outstanding issues with ASUU in the interest of longsuffering Nigerian students.

    He explained that the students would be forced to bear the brunt of the break down in the negotiation between the union and the government.

    He added that NANS would be meeting in the coming week with leaders of ASUU to find out their irreducible minimum in their demands.

    He threatened  that if by the expiration of 21days ultimatum, the issue was not resolved, Nigerian students would be forced to ground activities in the country.

    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that ASUU on Monday officially announced the commencement of its nationwide industrial actions at a news conference held in Abuja.

  • NANS to ‘resist’ hike in tuition fees

    NANS to ‘resist’ hike in tuition fees

    The National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) said on Wednesday it would resist any plan by some tertiary institutions to increase tuition fees.

    NANS President, Chinonso Obasi, said this in a statement in Abuja that the association received reports that at least 38 tertiary institutions had concluded plans to hike tuition fees in their institutions with utter pain and disgust.

    He said Nigerian students have been made to bear the brunt of poverty ideas and administrative ineptitude of managers and chief executives of tertiary institutions over the years.

    The statement reads: “NANS wishes to state that plans by some tertiary institutions to increase tuition fees would be met with maximum resistance.

    “In saner climes, education funding includes revenue from researches and consultative collaborations. Implementation of UNESCO strategies, particularly commercializing research findings should be the priority of Nigeria educational institutions rather than constant hike in tuition fees payable by helpless students.”

    NANS also said President Muhammadu Buhari has failed to justify the confidence Nigerian students who voted for the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the last elections.

    “This oversight becomes very painful despite the positive contributions of Nigerian students to the success of the administration’s key policies and programmes, such as the fight against corruption, maintenance of peace and unity in the country, as well as campaign for local government autonomy.

    “NANS feels that Nigerian students do not merit such harsh punishment as fee increases, which would further limit the capacity of the students to dream of a better future,” the statement added.

  • NANS wants FG to address poor social amenities in tertiary institutions

    The National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) has appealed to the Federal Government to address the issue of student’s welfare, such as poor social amenities in various universities in the country.

    NANS president Chinonso Obasi, who made the call in a statement in Abuja on Friday, said that this would go a long way in creating environment conducive for the Nigerian students to learn.
    “We call on the Federal Government to take the issues of student’s welfare serious.
    “We want the Federal Government to take the infrastructural decay and poor social amenities in various campuses very seriously.
    “ We also want to call on President Muhammadu Buhari to beam the anti-corruption searchlight on the nation’s tertiary institutions,” he said.
    He however, expressed happiness over the unconditional release of 13 students of University of Lagos (UNILAG) from detention at the Kirikiri Maximum Prison.
    A Special Offences Mobile Court in Lagos had on April 1, remanded 13 UNILAG students in Kirikiri Prisons, pending their bail applications.
    The accused persons were alleged to have engaged in unlawful invasion of Television Continental in Lagos.
    They were arraigned on a two-count charge of unlawful invasion and disruption of activities which they all pleaded not guilty.
    Obasi said their release came before the expiration of 24-hour ultimatum given to a Special Offences Mobile Court in Lagos to free the students or the union would relocate to the Kirikiri Prisons.
    “Our joy stems mainly from the fact that the gesture from the special court averted what would have undoubtedly sparked off a major students’ unrest in the country.
    “Because we were greatly pained that such a harsh punishment would be handed to long-suffering students at a time of immense socio-economic challenges.
    He therefore, commended the magistrate and the Special Offences Mobile Court for the wisdom and circumspection displayed in the matter.
    The NANS president urged the police authorities to always treat university undergraduates with care and caution, knowing the hard economic and social conditions they go through.
    “Because any attempts to deny students their right of free speech or treat their peaceful protest against high handed policies usually lead to needless violence and destruction of property,”Obasi noted

     

     

  • NANS to submit anti-corruption report to Buhari

    The National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) on Sunday in Abuja, said its report on anti-corruption was ready for submission to President Muhammadu Buhari.

    NANS President, Mr Chinonso Obasi disclosed this when speaking with newsmen at the side-lines of a thanksgiving service to mark the return of Buhari at Faith Miracle Centre International(FMCI).

    NANS had on March 8 declared a three-day prayer for the quick recovery and early return of Buhari to Nigeria.

    He said that God had answered the prayers of over 40 million Nigerian students as the president, who had been on extended medical vacation, returned within the period of the prayer.

    Obasi said that students were grateful to God for granting their prayers.

    “The urgent appeal I am making to Mr President, which is why we prayed for him to recover and come back, is to urgently order the anti-graft agencies to beam their searchlight on our tertiary institutions.

    “We have done a lot of work underground; any time within the week, we will be submitting our report on anti-corruption war we have been fighting.

    “We believe so much that he will swing into action.

    “We are pleading with Mr President to set up a special anti-corruption court; there is no gainsaying, we are fighting corruption and people found guilty keep on appealing,’’ he said.

    Obasi said that Nigerian students were the most marginalised group in Nigeria and appealed to the president to subsidise education.

    According to the NANS president, when a Nigerian child is trained, the nation is trained.

    He said it was wrong to leave the responsibility of training a Nigerian child to the parents because untrained children were tools for militancy and insurgency.

    Earlier in a special prayer for Buhari, Pastor Faith Vedelago thanked God for restoring the president’s health and bringing him back to Nigeria.

    She commended NANS for making out time to fast and pray for the president.

    “I will advise the president to also be prayerful; I believe that God will give him the wisdom to lead the nation well.

    “God said we should pray for our leaders and that is what we are doing; I believe that God will give him the grace to lead.

    “God has never forsaken Nigeria and I know he will not forsake us this time around,’’ she said.

    She said that if the citizens played their roles with commitment, things would be easy for the leaders.