By NANS Reacts as FG Gives National Honor to Adamu
Fatimah Idera
The National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) has chided the move by President Muhammadu Buhari to confer the National Honors Award on the Minister of Education, Mallam Adamu Adamu as the ASUU strike persists.
Recall that Buhari listed 437 names of notable individuals to be honoured on October 11, of which Adamu was among. These awards are given to citizens and sometimes foreigners in recognition of their outstanding contributions to the nation’s development.
In a statement by the NANS spokesmen, Giwa Yisa Temitope revealed that the Federal Government act is a clear pointer to the fact that Nigerian students have been taken for a ride as this is seen as the final straw that breaks the back of the camel of the administration.
This reads: “It constitutes an insult on the collective intelligence of Nigerian students both home and in the diaspora that the Minister of Education, Mallam Adamu Adamu under whose nose University students have been home for close to 8 months is to be awarded the National Honors of Commander of the Order of Niger (CON).”
“Over the years, successive administrations in the country have shown to the Nigerian people that the National Honor is more of recognition of patronage than recognition of excellence, But, Maj. Gen. Buhari (retd.) has taken a step further to show to the mass of Nigerian students that we are not on the priority list of the administration”.
Giwa maintained that it is so unfortunate that a country which offered so much hope and possibilities at independence has today become a land of suffering, insecurity and near hopelessness signposted by youth unemployment and an underfunded educational sector.
National PRO, NANS stated that in a functioning country, both the Minister of Labor, Chris Ngige who shamefully walked out of a meeting with the national leadership of ASUU at the instance of the House of Representatives and his Education counterpart would have been fired before now.
“But, the reverse is the case as Adamu Adamu under whose watch the educational sector of the country has collapsed is to be recognised with a National Honors for a job well done.”
NANS concluded that the association reiterate to pass a vote of no confidence on both Mallam Adamu Adamu and Chris Ngige as the administration has failed and that the Union will be forced to be back on the streets in protest until the Federal Government settle every issue with ASUU and Nigerian students to return to lecture theatres.
