The Nation Newspaper

Tag: NANS

  • NANS march against xenophobia in South Africa

    NANS march against xenophobia in South Africa

    The National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) has held rallies to condemn the xenophobic attacks on Nigerians and other Africans in South Africa. It threatened reprisals if the attacks continue, KINGSLEY AMATANWEZE and MAHMUD ABDULSALAM report.

    The National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) is blowing hot over the xenophobic attacks on Nigerians in South Africa. It has threatened reprisals, if the attacks are not stopped.

    During rallies in Abuja and Enugu State, NANS described the attacks as unwarranted.

    Hundreds of tertiary institutions in Niger State and Abuja gathered for the rally in the federal capital tagged: Madness to cure madness, against South Africa.

    The protesters condemned what they called assaults on Africans. They carried placards with inscriptions, such as “NANS against xenophobic attacks on Nigerians”, “We condemn attacks on our fellow Africans”, “We are our brothers’ keepers in Africa”, and “South Africans are bunch of ingrates”.

    The protesters led by NANS President, Aruna Kadiri, moved from the Unity Fountain to the MTN office in Maitama, and then to the Multichoice office in the Central Business District. They chanted solidarity songs, expressing their grievances to the cruelty and intolerance of South Africans against foreigners.

    The protesters marched on the South African High Commission, where they burnt South African flag. The demonstration was terminated at the Federal Ministry of Foreign Affairs, where the protesters demanded “decisive action” from the Federal Government on South Africa.

    Kadiri said: “We want to put it clear that we are annoyed by the nasty story emanating from South Africa. It is unfortunate that these acts of savagery by man to his fellow man happened in a country whose independence was fought by all Africans. Hence, we are saying enough is enough. We would not condone violent hostility towards Africans in South Africa.

    “Nigeria contributed significant resources to the freedom South Africans are enjoying today. It is surprising that the same people now humiliate Nigerians in their country. If they have forgotten so soon, let them recourse back to history and see how much Nigeria had contributed morally, logistically, forcefully and monetarily to liberate South Africa from the shackle of apartheid.”

    Responding, the Foreign Ministry spokespersons, Clement Aduku, urged the protesters to drop the idea of reprisal, saying the government did not rest on its oars in addressing the issue with its South African counterpart.

    The South African High Commissioner to Nigeria, Mr Lulu Aaron-Mnguni, regretted the attacks, promising that the culprits would be prosecuted.

    He said: ‘’The South African government share in the grief of Nigerians and other foreigners who may have suffered physical, emotional, psychological and financial trauma as a result of the xenophobic attacks. There is no denying that the incident is not only despicable but demeaning of the African race. However, I want to assure everyone that the culprits would not go unpunished. It is important that all foreign nationals in South Africa or those proposing a visit ensure that they travel with genuine documents and endeavour to respect the laws of their host country.”

    At a briefing after its rally, the Enugu State chapter of NANS urged the government to prevent recurrence of the attacks on Nigerians.

    Its Chairman, Chidi Ilogebe, said: “We are calling on the Federal Government to do the needful by bringing an end to xenophobic attacks on Nigerians in South Africa. We also call on the President of South Africa, Jacob Zuma, to protect foreigners living in his country. He needs to call his countrymen to order.”

    NANS Zonal Public Relations Officer (PRO), Victor Ezenagu, decried the attacks, saying they were signs of ingratitude to the role Nigeria played toward the freedom of South Africans.

    He said: “Nigerians don’t deserve what they are experiencing in the hands of South Africans. About three decades ago, we led a vanguard that fought apartheid in South Africa. The likes of Thabo Mbeki were given asylum in Nigeria. We saw South Africans as brothers.

    “Nothing warrants the attacks on Nigerians in South Africa. We call on the President Zuma to stop these xenophobic attacks on. South Africans shouldn’t think they have monopoly of violence. We have many of their countrymen in Nigeria and they are living in peace. We want them to reciprocate this good gesture to our patriots living in their country. They must know that respect begets respect, and violence begets violence too.”

    NANS said it is duty as pressure group to seek the protection of Nigerians in and outside the country’s border. The students urged the National Assembly, National Human Rights Commission, civil society organisations and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to expedite actions to ensuring protection for Nigerians in South Africa.

     

     

     

  • Don’t renege on your promises, NANS tells Akeredolu

    The National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) has congratulated Ondo State governor-elect, Mr Oluwarotimi Akeredolu (SAN), on his victory at the November 26 election. It urged him not to renege on his campaign promises to students.

    A statement by the state’s chapter of the NANS Joint Campus Committee (JCC) urged the governor-elect to ensure the disbursement of subventions to state-owned institutions, payment of bursary and scholarship as he promised.

    The JCC chairman, Anthony Atolusi, said: “We remind you that your campaign promises on education were based on funding schools owned by the state and payment of bursary and scholarship.  We want these promises to be your top most priority, including security of lives and property in the state.”

    NANS described Akeredolu’s victory as “well-deserved”, saying the clarity and practicability of his programmes necessitated the victory.

    The student body assured Akeredolu of its support and cooperation in the quest to transform the state.

    Anthony said: “We would like to use this opportunity to express our strong hope that relationship between the incoming administration and students would be built on respect, understanding and friendship. It will be based on mutual interest.

    “We firmly believe that Akeredolu would create a truly memorable history in this state, which will enhance unity among the people living in the state. We also hope the nee governor would create opportunity for investors to visit and invest in the state to create jobs and reduce poverty among our people.”

     

  • NANS honours priest

    NANS honours priest

    For Pastor Tina Bolanta, managing the education arm of the Restoration Bible Church and Ministries is just a call to duty and a way of assisting her cleric husband in his calling. For her, the Day Star Christian Academy, Lifespring Christian Academy and Mercy Home Orphanage Schools (primary and secondary) were just part of the ministery.

    She perhaps never thought anyone was watching until the leadership of the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) came calling. Their mission, according to their President, Adeola Kassim, was to honour her with the “Epitome of Leadership” award for her selfless service to God and humanity.

    NANS president said the association has been following Pastor Tina’s leadership qualities for a long time.

    According to him, the award was initiated by the students to recognise those who have contributed to socio-economic development of the nation especially in the area of education. He said the honour bestowed on her was not political or religious, adding that the student body made up of over 41 million Nigerian students of different political, tribal and religious backgrounds decided to set these differences aside to honor her for her contribution to moral and spiritual growth of the Nigerian youth.

    For the leadership of the church, Kassim has a word of advice for them. He said the award was very important to Nigeria students. To them, he said the award was equal to the national honour given to political and economic giants by government.

    He said, “I am a Muslim. I have condemned the activities of Boko Haram. I believe that it is a result of the failure of our legal system where everybody sets up a mosque and church to mislead their congregation. It is not a political honour, but one based on principles. If she is doing what motivates us to come to give her this honour, we will not hesitate to come back. It is more important to us in the student community than the national honour”.

    In accepting the award, Pastor Bolanta paid tribute to the entire staff of Day Star Christian Academy to whom she dedicated the award. She told the students that she was proud to be associated with them. She said, “It is our joy to see that you are not allowing where you come from to tell on your differences or where you worship to stop what you are doing in the various institutions where you come from. I am very honoured and very happy to receive the award. When do what you are asked to do or what you are called to do, you don’t do it thinking that you are going to get rewarded. Students of Day Star are studying in universities all over the world and doing very well. We are not there yet, but we are on our way to where we want to be.”

    On his part, the General Overseer of Restoration a Bible Church and Ministries and husband of the recipient, Revv. Tunde Bolanta ask leaders in the country to always listed the youths. “It is good to listen to the youth talk. That is a challenge and I pray that our leaders will realise that if our forefathers had not behaved the way they did, we won’t be here today.”

  • Crisis hits NANS over Jimoh Ibrahim’s award

    Crisis hits NANS over Jimoh Ibrahim’s award

    An award presented to Mr Jimoh Ibrahim, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidate in the November 26 Ondo State governoship election has caused a row in the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS). Some students are alleging that he bought the “Leardship Award”. TEMITOPE YAKUBU reports.

    CRISIS has hit the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) over an award presented to Mr Jimoh Ibrahim, the People, Democratic Party (PDP) candidate in the November 26 Ondo State governoship election. Some students believe that he bought the “Leadership Award” in order to get the association’s support in the election.

    But, NANS Senate President Salam Oyejide, who presented the award to Ibrahim, is keeping mum on inducement allegation.

    When CAMPUSLIFE spoke to him on telephone, Salam said he had nothing to say on the allegation. He added: “The award was presented to Mr Ibrahim because of various student-related programmes he has done and his support for education.”

    Salam’s explanation did not go down well with his colleagues, who criticised the NANS leadership for using the platform to feather its nest. They wondered why NANS always gives what they called “frivolous awards” to politicians during elections. The leadership’s latest action, they said, would further weaken NANS’ capability as a pressure group.

    NANS came under criticism during the 2015 elections for the series of awards presented to some politicians. After the  elections, NANS leaders drew the flaks when they presented an award to Senator Buruji Kashamu.

    Ibrahim’s representative was said to have received the award in the Postgraduate Complex the businessman donated to Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU) in Ile-Ife, Osun State, in 2011.

    It was the issue of discussion when CAMPUSLIFE visited OAU. Students are asking the association’s leadership to stop hiding behind the NANS facade to scoop money from politicians.

    They said the association’s activities are against the tradition of students’ unionism.

    According to Moshood Olajide, former Public Relations Officer (PRO) of OAU Students’ Union Security Committee, the NANS’ action is a rape on students’ unionism, adding: “The action of the NANS Senate President is an affront to our collective struggle as students and a rape on the tradition bequeathed to us by the founding leaders. NANS’ awards should go to radicals, not politicians who are oppressing the students. This action has shown that, NANS Senate President was insincere in his manifesto in which he promised to bring back the association’s glory.”

    Moshood pointed out that students expected a body that would lead an agitation for reduction of fees and campaign for good governance. He said students should not see the present crop of NANS leaders as those that would take the association out of the woods.

    “The kind of leadership students expected is not seen in the current crop of leaders. NANS is supposed to be part of the pressure groups  that will strengthen our democracy by fighting income disparity and anti-masses policies. Students are tired of NANS leaders giving frivolous awards to politicians in exchange for money.We are tied of hungry leaders hosting meetings with vice-chancellors to sabotage students’ interests,” he said.

    An education student, who identified himself as Comrade Joe, described the award as an insult to students.

    He said: “I will not be a party to mediocrity and travesty of students’ unionism. I don’t know why somebody would wake up today to give award for something done five years ago. Besides, the Prof Bamitale Omole-led management had honoured Ibrahim for donating the Postgraduate complex. Also, the Faculty of Law presented an award to him for the same reason.

    “Is it that NANS is just waking up after five years? The award is an insult to the collective sensibility of students. NANS leaders need to tell us how much they were paid to create such frivolous award to boost the ego of a moneybag. They are selfish and driven by personal interest, rather than common good.”

    Wole Olubanji, an OAU alumnus and the convener of Alliance of Nigerian Students Against Neo-Liberal Attack (ANSA), described the award as ridiculous and self-serving. He said though NANS could honour anyone for achievements, such award, he said, must be subjected to popular vote among students.

    He said: “OAU Students’ Union leaders, led by the Speaker, Niyi Adewumi, in 1986 honoured the late Gani Fawehinmi with the Senior Advocate of the Masses (SAM). This was a general decision subjected to democratic process. It was a unanimous decision supported by all students.

    “Such award was not controversial, because it was a product of intense debate on the character of the recipient. And whether such award was necessary, reverse is the case in that of Ibrahim. It was a decision of a few students, who are looking for the politician’s money.”

    It was gathered that members of the NANS Senate have not convened any sitting since they were elected months ago. This fueled the insinuation that the NANS Senate President may have acted alone in giving the award to Ibrahim.

    Gafar Fatoyinbo, an Education student, criticised the NANS leadership for what he called its insensitivity, noting that there were many events calling for NANS’ attention.

    He said: “Weeks ago, the management of Kwara State Polytechnic expelled SUG Welfare Director for challenging the school authorities on students’ welfare. Ladoke Akintola University of Technology (LAUTECH) has been closed down for over four months, while over 23 students were suspended by the University of Lagos (UNILAG). There have not been serious  efforts by NANS to address these issues. We have an association that is effective in turning itself to an appendage of politicians, rather than being being a platform for students to fight oppression.”

    Lekan Igbasan, a 200-Level Philosophy student, said the award stood logic on the head, observing that the recipient’s democratic credential was questionable. He cited Ibrahim’s decision to contest for governor under a factionalised party, adding that the PDP candidate’s antecedent as a bad manager   showed that he would be dictatorial and anti-masses.

    He said: “All these actions are against the ideals of unionism. Such a person (Ibrahim) should not be honoured by any student. NANS should stop giving politicians awards and concentrate on addressing the plight of students.”

    CAMPUSLIFE gathered that some members of NANS executive present during the ceremony left immediately the  award was conferred on the politician to avoid any untoward situation.

  • NANS again! (2)

    NANS again! (2)

    To fully comprehend why the 31st convention of the National Association of Nigerian Students’ (NANS) held in Gombe, Gombe State failed is to understand the history and dynamics of the association from the mid-1990s to date. It was during this period that its visionless leadership dragged it into the murky waters of Nigerian politics. This brought the leaders “face to face” with the intrigues of “how to make money” in Nigeria by utilising your position. In later years, it became so brazen and so much “in your face” with all consequences damned.

    A classic example happened only last week when the “Acting president/convention chairman,” Prince Miaphen and four zonal coordinators – Usman Baba Kankia, Pedro Chibuzor Obi, Habib Salau Enesi and Okikiola Ogunsola in a statement they signed – pledged their support for Hon. Yakubu Dogara, the Speaker of the House of Representatives over allegation of budget padding. They pledged their loyalty during a “world press conference” because “the speaker has engaged students and young people in a way that no other speaker had.”

    I guess readers would be wondering why these students who were not able to put their own house in order by conducting a simple and transparent election would choose to dabble into a political issue that is still unfolding; an issue no one knows where the pendulum would swing. Some may be wondering if pecuniary interest is the case here.

    For those who may not know, since there are little or no jobs out there NANS has, for some time now, become a veritable platform where we have a group of perpetual students and their cronies in leadership. Some of these “leaders” have Masters’ degree but would rather choose to apply for a diploma programme in any discipline so that they can remain “relevant” in NANS politics. This is the sorry state of student unionism in the country. When last did you hear them raising an alarm over even issues that bother on their own welfare?

    Instead of commenting on the falling standard of education, the excruciating poverty and inequality in the land, the insurgency in the northeast, the Niger Delta crises and other critical challenges facing the nation these visionless “students” are busy dragging the entire Nigerian students in the mud.

    It is really difficult situating student unionism of the past with the sham we now have in place today. It had a cherished and glorious history that started with the emergence of West African Student Union (WASU) pioneered by some Nigerian students in London in 1925. WASU took the mandate of fighting for the rights of Africans during colonial rule and their impact was visible.

    This was followed by the National Union of Nigerian Students, (NUNS) whose last leader was the late Segun Okeowo. The NUNS was proscribed by the regime of General Olusegun Obasanjo. But with the advent of democratic rule, Nigerian students converged at the Yaba College of Technology, Lagos to establish NANS. NANS thus inherited the same idealism from WASU and NUNS and the student union marched on as a platform of change and informed activism.

    I still vividly recollect how NANS served as an active resistance group during the era of military regimes in Nigeria. It was part of the movement that fought for a return to civil rule in the country. By 1990 however, NANS was at the peak of its glory, having played a significant role in rousing Nigerians to protest the Structural Adjustment Program (SAP) imposed by the General Ibrahim Babangida’s regime in line with recommendations from the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

    The year also marked the beginning of what would be a split within the association later. The NANS annual convention for the year had been fixed for November 30, 1990 at Auchi Polytechnic, Auchi Edo State, but because of disagreements it was moved to the University of Benin (UNIBEN).

    After the controversial and heated convention, NANS – for the first time – witnessed a split along ethno-religious lines when undergraduates from Usman Dan Fodio University, Sokoto (UDU), announced a “Northern NANS.” This almost tore the union apart, but the students eventually came together after finding common grounds of agreement.

    However, that split fostered deeper ideological conflicts and schisms between different interest groups and weakened the broad platform of the body which unfortunately has continued to date. This compelled a delegate to the convention to later allege that: “Student unionism has been infiltrated by dirty money politics as well as brigandage by members of some confraternities and cult groups.”

    But some analysts strike more sympathetic notes as they see the new developments as not simply evidence of student leaders’ “degeneration,” but as a symptom of broader problems in the larger society. They point to the 2005 case when the then NANS president Orkuma Hembe used the platform to campaign for Obasanjo’s third term gambit and even went further to award him “Defender of Democracy” award.

    This was against the backdrop of a groundswell of opposition that this same defender of democracy proscribed NUNS, expelled and rusticated several of its leaders from their various university campuses across the country.

    To try to understand the situation in today’s NANS is to also understand the larger political and societal malaise plaguing the nation. For instance, the principle of zoning of offices is a creation of the Federal Character Commission and our political parties; but it also found its way into the constitution of NANS as well.

    While this is on a broader level, the students did not take proactive measures to address issues where they can be taken serious. It will surprise most readers that for a student body in the 21st century NANS website and twitter handle are all dormant; in fact, it has been dormant for some time now. It is shameful that while the leadership is busy endorsing politicians it could not activate a common website! So what have all the undergraduates of computer science been doing?

    What would be my recommendations if the students, by some miracle, can put their shattered house together? The association must first be rebranded and repositioned. But this can only be carried out by a purposeful and vision oriented leadership. Again, where will this leadership come from?

    If it does emerge, it should go back to history and study the ideals of both WASU and NUNS. I’m aware that some past leaders of the association are still active in some sectors of the economy; they can still play a positive role in repositioning the association away from brigandage and pecuniary gains.

    Since no convention comes without allegation of rigging, I will recommend that the process of electing its president and other officials be completely overhauled. The solution will be to adopt the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) e-voting model adopted for its 2016 General Election where Mr. Abubakar Mahmoud (SAN) was elected the 33rd president of the umbrella association of professional lawyers. The Nigerian Society of Engineers (NSE) also adopted the model in electing its leaders.

    Previously, the NBA elected its leadership by a system of delegates drawn from the 100 branches of the Bar with each branch entitled to 10 delegates. If a branch has 100 members or more, it gets an additional delegate for every one hundred members. Also entitled to vote as delegates are the elected officers of the NBA (13 of them), all living lawyers (excluding judges) who are members of the Body of Benchers, Senior Advocates of Nigeria (SANs) and all members of the expanded National Executive Committee (NEC) of the Association.

    Former NBA President, Augustine Alegeh, SAN, initiated the change on Friday, August 29 2014, in Owerri, Imo State where he pressed for e-voting within the electoral system in the NBA. The association rightly reasoned that it does not have the moral right to criticise the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) for its well-advertised inefficiencies if it too cannot conduct a rancor free election.

    The e-voting was widely adjudged as successful and if adopted by NANS it will go a long way in repositioning the association to play its role in the country.

  • NANS again! (2)

    To fully comprehend why the 31st convention of the National Association of Nigerian Students’ (NANS) held in Gombe, Gombe State failed is to understand the history and dynamics of the association from the mid-1990s to date. It was during this period that its visionless leadership dragged it into the murky waters of Nigerian politics. This brought the leaders “face to face” with the intrigues of “how to make money” in Nigeria by utilising your position. In later years, it became so brazen and so much “in your face” with all consequences damned.

    A classic example happened only last week when the “Acting president/convention chairman,” Prince Miaphen and four zonal coordinators – Usman Baba Kankia, Pedro Chibuzor Obi, Habib Salau Enesi and Okikiola Ogunsola in a statement they signed – pledged their support for Hon. Yakubu Dogara, the Speaker of the House of Representatives over allegation of budget padding. They pledged their loyalty during a “world press conference” because “the speaker has engaged students and young people in a way that no other speaker had.”

    I guess readers would be wondering why these students who were not able to put their own house in order by conducting a simple and transparent election would choose to dabble into a political issue that is still unfolding; an issue no one knows where the pendulum would swing. Some may be wondering if pecuniary interest is the case here.

    For those who may not know, since there are little or no jobs out there NANS has, for some time now, become a veritable platform where we have a group of perpetual students and their cronies in leadership. Some of these “leaders” have Masters’ degree but would rather choose to apply for a diploma programme in any discipline so that they can remain “relevant” in NANS politics. This is the sorry state of student unionism in the country. When last did you hear them raising an alarm over even issues that bother on their own welfare?

    Instead of commenting on the falling standard of education, the excruciating poverty and inequality in the land, the insurgency in the northeast, the Niger Delta crises and other critical challenges facing the nation these visionless “students” are busy dragging the entire Nigerian students in the mud.

    It is really difficult situating student unionism of the past with the sham we now have in place today. It had a cherished and glorious history that started with the emergence of West African Student Union (WASU) pioneered by some Nigerian students in London in 1925. WASU took the mandate of fighting for the rights of Africans during colonial rule and their impact was visible.

    This was followed by the National Union of Nigerian Students, (NUNS) whose last leader was the late Segun Okeowo. The NUNS was proscribed by the regime of General Olusegun Obasanjo. But with the advent of democratic rule, Nigerian students converged at the Yaba College of Technology, Lagos to establish NANS. NANS thus inherited the same idealism from WASU and NUNS and the student union marched on as a platform of change and informed activism.

    I still vividly recollect how NANS served as an active resistance group during the era of military regimes in Nigeria. It was part of the movement that fought for a return to civil rule in the country. By 1990 however, NANS was at the peak of its glory, having played a significant role in rousing Nigerians to protest the Structural Adjustment Program (SAP) imposed by the General Ibrahim Babangida’s regime in line with recommendations from the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

    The year also marked the beginning of what would be a split within the association later. The NANS annual convention for the year had been fixed for November 30, 1990 at Auchi Polytechnic, Auchi Edo State, but because of disagreements it was moved to the University of Benin (UNIBEN).

    After the controversial and heated convention, NANS – for the first time – witnessed a split along ethno-religious lines when undergraduates from Usman Dan Fodio University, Sokoto (UDU), announced a “Northern NANS.” This almost tore the union apart, but the students eventually came together after finding common grounds of agreement.

    However, that split fostered deeper ideological conflicts and schisms between different interest groups and weakened the broad platform of the body which unfortunately has continued to date. This compelled a delegate to the convention to later allege that: “Student unionism has been infiltrated by dirty money politics as well as brigandage by members of some confraternities and cult groups.”

    But some analysts strike more sympathetic notes as they see the new developments as not simply evidence of student leaders’ “degeneration,” but as a symptom of broader problems in the larger society. They point to the 2005 case when the then NANS president Orkuma Hembe used the platform to campaign for Obasanjo’s third term gambit and even went further to award him “Defender of Democracy” award.

    This was against the backdrop of a groundswell of opposition that this same defender of democracy proscribed NUNS, expelled and rusticated several of its leaders from their various university campuses across the country.

    To try to understand the situation in today’s NANS is to also understand the larger political and societal malaise plaguing the nation. For instance, the principle of zoning of offices is a creation of the Federal Character Commission and our political parties; but it also found its way into the constitution of NANS as well.

    While this is on a broader level, the students did not take proactive measures to address issues where they can be taken serious. It will surprise most readers that for a student body in the 21st century NANS website and twitter handle are all dormant; in fact, it has been dormant for some time now. It is shameful that while the leadership is busy endorsing politicians it could not activate a common website! So what have all the undergraduates of computer science been doing?

    What would be my recommendations if the students, by some miracle, can put their shattered house together? The association must first be rebranded and repositioned. But this can only be carried out by a purposeful and vision oriented leadership. Again, where will this leadership come from?

    If it does emerge, it should go back to history and study the ideals of both WASU and NUNS. I’m aware that some past leaders of the association are still active in some sectors of the economy; they can still play a positive role in repositioning the association away from brigandage and pecuniary gains.

    Since no convention comes without allegation of rigging, I will recommend that the process of electing its president and other officials be completely overhauled. The solution will be to adopt the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) e-voting model adopted for its 2016 General Election where Mr. Abubakar Mahmoud (SAN) was elected the 33rd president of the umbrella association of professional lawyers. The Nigerian Society of Engineers (NSE) also adopted the model in electing its leaders.

    Previously, the NBA elected its leadership by a system of delegates drawn from the 100 branches of the Bar with each branch entitled to 10 delegates. If a branch has 100 members or more, it gets an additional delegate for every one hundred members. Also entitled to vote as delegates are the elected officers of the NBA (13 of them), all living lawyers (excluding judges) who are members of the Body of Benchers, Senior Advocates of Nigeria (SANs) and all members of the expanded National Executive Committee (NEC) of the Association.

    Former NBA President, Augustine Alegeh, SAN, initiated the change on Friday, August 29 2014, in Owerri, Imo State where he pressed for e-voting within the electoral system in the NBA. The association rightly reasoned that it does not have the moral right to criticise the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) for its well-advertised inefficiencies if it too cannot conduct a rancor free election.

    The e-voting was widely adjudged as successful and if adopted by NANS it will go a long way in repositioning the association to play its role in the country.

  • NANS again! (1)

    This is my seventh article on the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) in two years. Expending time and energy is a reflection of how concerned I am about student unionism in the country. Within the period, I have had both physical and phone discussions with past and present leaders of the students’ body. In one of our discussions, I made an elaborate presentation on how they can put their house in order and produce a formidable association whose voice can be heard and respected in the nation.

    Their voices – alongside that of lecturers – need to be heard so that policy makers would be guided in providing direction for tertiary education. Unfortunately, that has not been the case for years now because students do not have a unified voice due to rudderless leadership.

    My intervention partially paid off during the leadership of Tijani Usman when dissenting voices were, at least, reduced to a tolerable level and the association had a semblance of peace after the gale of spurious endorsements of politicians of all hues and shades. That “peace” was however shattered during the just concluded 31st National Convention held in Gombe, Gombe State which was initially postponed three times.

    The convention was scheduled to be a four-day affair but ended abruptly following heavy gun shots, yes; you read right, gunshots at the venue of the convention. This newspaper aptly captured it as “Wild, wild NANS” in our story last week.

    What transpired at the Gombe convention is a clear reflection of how low we have sank as a nation; and to imagine that these crop of undergraduates are the once some often tout as “leaders of tomorrow” will bring tears to the eyes of anyone who wishes this country well.

    Rather than unify the student body, the convention ended up producing two presidents just like the 26th convention in Uyo, Akwa Ibom State produced three presidents; Yinka Gbadebo of Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU), Ile Ife, Adelu Monehim James also of OAU and Prince Miaphen of Adekunle Ajasin University. The Gombe convention produced Tonye Tom-George of University of Port Harcourt (UNIPORT) and Chinonso Ubasi of Ebonyi State University (EBSU) in Abakaliki. Each claimed the NANS presidency. How this was done reminds me of our unique democracy some years back.

    As a result of the “inconclusive” convention, one of the candidates, Tonye Tom-George, and his “delegates” relocated to Abuja where a “peaceful election” was conducted with him declared the winner. Sounds familiar? You bet it does. Remember how some state Houses of Assembly often relocate to Abuja to impeach their speakers or governors? It is now clear that our undergraduates were actually watching with keen interests and we have seen that they have turned out to be good students of history.

    The drama did not end there. After gunshots had chased most delegates away, Chinonso Ubasi – who also goes by the nickname “IBB – and his “delegates” later convened at the same venue where a “credible and peaceful” election was held with him also declared the next NANS president.

    To also show that they are equally good students of history, Chinonso and his “team” reportedly visited Governor Ibrahim Dankwambo of Gombe State, who congratulated him. As reported in our story, the convention delegates – who are Students’ Union leaders on their campuses – described Chinonso’s action as shocking. Expectedly, they declared his purported election null and void, because it was not a product of the NANS convention.

    Why did the convention go awry? It all started with the appointment of Prince Miaphen as the convention chairman. Most of the delegates kicked against his appointment because he serves as the campaign chairman of one of the contestants, Kadiri Aruna of the Ambrose Alli University (AAU) in Ekpoma, Edo State.

    It was not surprising that other candidates and their supporters rejected Prince’s nomination on the ground that he could not be a neutral arbiter; in essence, he cannot chair an election in which his candidate was a contestant. Prince, they argued, lacked the moral right to organise a free and fair election. This was the point when gunshots were fired and other dangerous weapons used to scare delegates away. Instructively, none of the candidates for president was nominated before the violence broke out.

    Feelers I got were that the convention was deliberately made to fail with the aim of creating a constitutional crisis which will benefit some interests deep into NANS politics. For instance, was there a grand plan to have an inconclusive election so that an “acting” president can take over? If this is not the case, why would officials not arrive at a common ground and slate a new date for another convention since this one was marred by violence?

    From my standpoint, I do not think it was fair for Prince Miaphen to be the convention chairman since he was the campaign manager to one of the contestants. I cast my mind back to the highly controversial tenure of Yinka Gbadebo when a similar incident took place in Jos, Plateau State between Gbadebo and supporters of Miaphen when Gbadebo went on his “thank you” tour to plateau and neighbouring states after emerging NANS president.

    According to our report last week, Miaphen has already sent a petition to the Federal Government not to recognise Chinonso as NANS president. In the petition sent through the Senior Special Assistant to President Muhammadu Buhari on Youth and Students’ Matter, Nasir Adama, he said there is a vacuum in NANS and that the association has not elected anyone as its president.

    Copies of the petition were sent to the ministers of Education, Youth and Sports Development, Executive Secretary of the National Universities Commission (NUC), Committee of Vice-Chancellors (CVC) and the media. The petition “advised” Adama and the federal agencies to arrest and prosecute anyone parading himself as NANS president.

    In a counter allegation, Chinonso’s camp accused the outgoing NANS president, Tijani Usman of masterminding the violence. Tijani, it was alleged, wanted to impose his “preferred candidates” on the association. A peace meeting called at the instance of the outgoing president in Abuja, I was told ended in fisticuffs. This is where student unionism in Nigeria stands today.

    In my article “Time to rejig NANS” last year, I did mention that it is saddening that undergraduates could not provide a coherent voice in the run up to the 2015 elections. Other than the gale of suspicious and spurious endorsements of some candidates, the “students” could not even produce a position paper to their preferred candidates on what they desire for the education sector should the candidates win. Just like the society they live in, our students were mainly concerned with the candidates that can haul in the largest amount of cash. This cash for endorsement strategy further factionalised an already distressed association.

    What a sad commentary for an association that produced the likes of late Segun Okeowo, Chris Abashi, Akintunde Ojo, Chima Ubani, Chris Mammah and a host of other leaders with foresight. For those old enough to remember the military era, they will recollect the part the National Union of Nigerian Students (NUNS), the precursor of NANS, and later NANS itself played in giving the military authorities’ sleepless nights, sometimes at the detriment of their personal safety.

    Back then, student unionism was ideologically driven with release of detailed and intelligent analysis of the state of the nation and regular communique that are deep with insight and knowledge, not the shallow and apologetic statements that we see from the stable of representatives of Nigerian students these days.

    Where did they derail and what are the lessons to be learnt? I will provide answers to these and many more questions and proffer solutions for the way forward for NANS include holding future foolproof, credible and acceptable elections.

  • Wild, wild NANS

    Wild, wild NANS

    The 31st National Convention of the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) has ended in violence in Gombe State. Delegates fled the venue, following sporadic gunfire by hoodlums. The development has led to another division in the association, barely two years after all factions agreed to work together. Two presidents emerged after the aborted convention.TEMITOPE YAKUBU (Federal Polytechnic, Ado-Ekiti), Precious Dikewoha (University of Port Harcourt) and SEGUN ODUNAYO (Adekunle Ajasin University, Akungba-Akoko) report.

    For students, it was cheery news when the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) factions closed ranks in 2014 and elected a unified leadership. Barely two years after, NANS appears divided again.

    Two presidents emerged from its deadlocked national convention at the Pantami International Stadium in Gombe State last week. They are Tonye Tom-George of University of Port  Harcourt (UNIPORT) and Chinonson Ubasi of the Ebonyi State University (EBSU) in Abakaliki. Chinonson reportedly declared himself as NANS president. Tonye claimed to have been elected when the students relocated to Abuja for the convention. The four-day convention ended abruptly, following heavy gunfires.

    Could there have been an election at a convention marred by violence? This is the question being asked by students, who expressed disappointment over their leaders’ conduct. It was learnt that the convention was postponed three times for fear of violence. There were eight candidates vying for the president. But, the race was clearly between Chinonso and Kadiri Aruna of the Ambrose Alli University (AAU) in Ekpoma, Edo State.

    CAMPUSLIFE gathered that the event was peaceful until the time for nomination of convention officers, who will supervise the election. The violence was reportedly triggered by the nomination of Kadiri’s campaign manager, Prince Miaphen, as the convention chairman.

    Other candidates and their supporters rejected Prince’s nomination on the ground that he could not chair an election in which his candidate was a contestant. Prince, they argued, lacked the moral right to organise a free and fair election.

    Fracas broke out in the heat of the argument, resulting in a free-for-all. CAMPUSLIFE gathered that gunfires echoed, causing the delegates to run in different directions. Machetes and other dangerous weapons were freely used by the rampaging hoodlums.

    It was learnt that the combined team of security agents, including soldiers, police and Department of State Service (DSS) operatives, left in the middle of the convention, paving the way for the hoodlums to have their way.

    None of the candidates for president was nominated before the violence, it was gathered. Amid the fracas, the convention was declared inconclusive and the delegates were asked to leave.

    But, Chinonso, known as IBB, and his supporters, allegedly reconvened at the stadium after other delegates had left and purportedly held an election in which he was the sole candidate. Chinonso was declared the new NANS chief.

    Chinonso and his team visited Governor Ibrahim Dankwambo, who congratulated him. Reacting, the delegates, who are Students’ Union leaders on their campuses, described Chinonso’s action as shocking. They declared his purported election was null and void, because it was not a product of the NANS convention.

    During a visit to The Nation Port Harcourt office on Monday, Tonye apologised to students who were injured during the aborted convention, describing it as a show of rascality, intimidation and impunity.

    He said when the senators (SUG presidents) discovered that they and their fellow students were not safe, they relocated to Abuja to conduct a peaceful election where he was declared winner.

    He thanked the police, DSS, Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDCS) and the Special Assistant to the President on Youth and Students’ Matter for ensuring that no life  was lost in the violence.

    Narrating what led to the violence, Tonye said: “The Director-General of one of the nominees became the convention chairman and other aspirants kicked against it. That was what led to the crisis. Students were chased out of the venue and in the process of running for safety many people got injured.

    “But when the delegates realised that the place was not safe for us anymore, we relocated to Abuja with the help of the security agencies. The election was peacefully conducted and I was declared winner of the election.”

    He promised to ensure students’ welfare and socio-economic development, renovate dilapidated hostels in tertiary institutions and fight for non-increment of tuition fees.

    The outgoing NANS Public Relations Officer (PRO), Damilare Fagbodun, rejected Chinonso’s “one-man show”, saying it was an attempt to factionalise the association. He said: “It is unfortunate that some people, who should focus on genuine struggle for the emancipation of students, have been making efforts to factionalise NANS because of their loyalty to a political party.”

    Damilare said Governor Dankwambo would be sued for recognising Chinonso as the new NANS president.

    Simbiat Ogunlayi, a delegate and student of the College of Health Technology in Ijero Ekiti, said there was no election at the convention. She said the violence stopped the process and the delegates left the venue immediately.

    She said: “There are many questions which Chinonso and his supporters must answer. When and where did the purported election hold? Which convention committee supervised the process? Who were the delegates that voted for him? Who called for that kangaroo convention?”

    Simbiat described Chinonso as a “selfish candidate” and “power monger”.

    A delegate from Rivers State, Innocent Lenee, said Prince is the only convention chairman recognised by students. He asked Chinonso to name members of the convention committee that supervised his election.

    He said: “It must be known that NANS presently has only one interim national officer in the person of Prince Miaphen, who was elected as convention chairman. The violence that greeted the convention has created a constitutional crisis in NANS, because the association’s constitution is silent on a situation where there is no president.

    “In effect, Prince cannot be addressed as Acting President, but as convention chairman. The best way to go is to urgently fix a new date for the election to be held. This crisis should enable the incoming executive to look into the inconsistencies in the NANS constitution and review them.”

    National Association of Polytechnic Students (NAPS) Vice President Olawale Seriki said the nomination of convention chairman was inconclusive, asking Prince to stop parading himself as chairman of the NANS convention committee.

    He said: “Prince is a bundle of deceit. He purposely postponed the convention to jeopardise the whole process without giving it a second thought. It is also unconstitutional for Prince to call himself Acting President of NANS. We will institute a legal action against him if he supervises the election, because he lacks the moral right to do so. We know they have agenda, which is why they tried to install him as convention chairman.”

    Prince has sent a petition to the Federal Government not to recognise Chinonso as NANS president. In the petition sent through the Senior Special Assistant to President Muhammadu Buhari on Youth and Students’ Matter, Nasir Adama, Prince said there is a vacuum in NANS and that the association has not elected anyone as its president.

    Copies of the petition were sent to the ministers of Education, Youth and Sports Development, Executive Secretary of the National Universities Commission (NUC), Committee of Vice-Chancellors (CVC) and the media.

    The petition advised Adama and the federal agencies to arrest and prosecute anyone parading himself as NANS president.

    The petition reads: “On July 18, 2016, at about 4:30pm, when I, Comrade Prince Miaphen, emerged as the chairman at the 31st national convention of the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) at Pantami International Stadium in Gombe State, I immediately commenced with the expected procedure, which was to conduct elections into the national offices of NANS.

    “At about 5:45 pm of the same date, I saw a team of armed thugs, advancing towards the convention venue. In the process, they beat up and intimidated delegates to the convention. I was also severely beaten by the thugs.

    “It should be known that I called off the convention after the delegates said they could not continue with the process, because of security breaches at the venue.”

    Last weekend, Prince met with four NANS zonal coordinators – Uman Baba Kankia (Zone A), Chibuzo Obi (Zone B), Habib Salau (Zone C) and Okikiola Ogunsola (Zone D). They jointly addressed a press conference, where Prince promised to conduct a transparent, free and fair election in six weeks.

    Chinonso’s camp accused the outgoing NANS president, Tijani Usman Shehu, of masterminding the violence. Tijani, it was alleged, wanted to impose his “preferred candidates” on the association.

    A peace meeting called at the instance of the outgoing president in Abuja, last Thursday, ended in a brawl. One of Chinonso’s supporters, Yinka Dada, was allegedly stabbed by Tijani. A participant at the meeting, Kabiru Ibrahim, told CAMPUSLIFE that Tijani stabbed Yinka on the arm when the latter opposed the outgoing NANS leader’s plea to allow his anointed candidate, Igwe Ude-Umanta, be the General Secretary.

    When contacted on telephone, Tijani neither denied nor confirmed the allegation, but ended the call. Tijani did not pick his calls afterwards.

     

     

  • NANS urges N’ Assembly to speed up passage of bill

    The National Association of Nigerian Students has called on the National Assembly to speed up the passage of the Communication Service Tax (CST) and Unemployed Youth, Elderly and Indigent Sustainability Allowances Trust Fund.

    The two bills, according to NANS, at the Second Reading at the National Assembly.

    NANS National President, Tijani Shehu, at a press briefing in Abuja, said that developed countries were using the CST to tax telecommunication countries to develop their economies.

    Shehu wondered why Nigeria had not implemented the CST when Ghana had already adopted it to regulate its telecommunication sector.

    He said: “CST has hugely helped the economies of the countries of the world. History shows that none of the countries had problems implementing the CST tax regime since it was all about taking a little from the rich and giving to the poor.

    “Even our neighbor, Ghana, has implemented the CST since 2008. We always wonder how other countries manage their economy without oil. 20% of the CST collected by the Ghanaian government through the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) is channeled to youth unemployment while the remaining 80% goes to the government purse for development purposes enjoyed by the masses.

    “While bill one (CST) serves and provides the much needed funds via a globally trusted and accepted means practiced all over the world, bill two channels a good percentage of the funds to fighting youth restiveness and poverty via youth employment and care for the elderly and indigent citizens as likewise practiced all over the world since the advent of GSM.

    “After in-depth study, analysis, series of meetings, nationwide sensitizations on the twin bills, and the leadership of the NANS at an extra-ordinary emergency meeting have decided to lend their total support.

    “And NANS will do all that is within their powers and ambit of the law to ensure that the two bills are given speedy passage at the National Assembly.”

  • NANS honours Sokoto varsity VC

    The Vice Chancellor,  Sokoto State University, Prof Nuhu  Yaqub, has been honoured with the best Vice-Chancellor in Human Transformation by the National Association of Nigerian Students ( NANS).

    A statement signed by the Public Relations Officer of the university, Mr Zayyanu Shehu, noted that Yaqub was presented with the award by NANS National Stakeholder, Mr Luka  Zuru.

    The students said the award was in recognition of Yaqub’s “selfless contribution towards purposeful leadership.”

    Zuru said other qualities that fetched the VC the honour included youth empowerment, social transformation and human development for the benefit of humanity.

    He said “We are aware of your tremendous achievements during your tenure as the Vice-Chancellor of the University of Abuja, among which were moving the university campus from Gwagwalada to its permanent site at Giri Village; creating additional faculties, which included Medicine, Engineering, Veterinary Medicine and Agriculture.”

    The NANS leader implored the VC not allow distraction to derail his work, but to see the award as a catalyst that would propel him to work harder for the development of the institution.

    Replying, Yaqub said he was overwhelmed by the honour and vowed never to relent in the struggle for justice, equity, and transparency.

    While pointing out that leadership did not mean confrontation or division of people; rather, unity and cohesion, the VC also lamented, “honours are nowadays being  bastardised, not awarded on credibility.”