President Muhammadu Buhari has called on the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) to reconsider their position on the continued strike, expressing worry that the hiatus will have generational consequences on families, the educational system and future development of the country.
The President, who stated this when he received some governors of the All Progressives Congress (APC), legislators and political leaders at his residence, said the strike had already taken a toll on the psychology of parents, students and other stakeholders, throwing up many moral issues that already beg for attention.
ASUU commenced its latest strike on February 14, 2022.
“We hope that ASUU will sympathise with the people on the prolonged strike. Truly, enough is enough for keeping students at home. Don’t hurt the next generation for goodness sake,” he was quoted as saying by Channels TV.
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According to Buhari, students from Nigerian universities will be faced with the challenge of competing with others in a highly connected and technology-driven work space, and keeping them at home only deprives them of time, skill and opportunities to be relevant on the global stage.
“Colonial type education was geared towards producing workers in government. Those jobs are no longer there. Our young people should get education to prepare them for self-employment. Now education is for the sake of education.
“Through technology, we are much more efficient. We should encourage our children to get education, not only to look for government jobs,” he added.