NANS to FG: Your economic recovery plan doesn’t address challenges of universities

The National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) has queried the Federal Government’s economic recovery plan which it says “does not have provisions for addressing the critical challenges of Nigerian universities and its students.”

On Monday, the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) embarked on an indefinite strike over the government’s failure to implement the 2009 agreement it reached with the union.

The agreement borders on the government paying lecturers their accumulated allowances as well as providing necessary funding for universities.

Speaking with journalists in Abuja, on Wednesday, president of NANS, Chinonso Obasi, said the strike translated into a “distortion of learning, unnecessary delays and waste of time in the completion of a course of study.”

He said the strike had also put pressure on parents and described it as a general loss to the economy.

The NANS president said it was important for students know about the contents of the plan and how it directly impacted on their lives.

He expressed displeasure that critical issues that would permanently address and bring to an end the lingering disagreements between ASUU and the Federal Government were not included in the plan.