The National Association of Polytechnic Students (NAPS) has said polytechnic students will not be involved in the planned June 12 nationwide protest.
President, NAPS, Mr Olalere Benedict, stated this while addressing a press conference in Ibadan.
Olalere hinged the association’s decision on the fact that such protests over the years had yielded no result and that there was the need to adopt another mode to push for a better Nigeria.
Rather than protests, he argued that such a day should be set aside for the organization of programmes to the orientation of youths and all Nigerians on living up to their roles towards achieving a better democracy.
Olalere said: “We are not involved in anything called June 12 protest. Some may say NAPS has taken money from the federal government for this stance but I have never collected a dime from theFederal Government.
“We are the future of democracy and if we do not have the right orientation now, there won’t be this future.
“I am not in support of that. What we should be having on June 12 is a seminar or conference on Democracy day, telling us not to sell our votes. It should be set aside for orientation, not for agitation, protest.
“We need to change the old pattern, our approach to issues. What is my commitment to the peace of the nation when we continue to embark on one protest after another?
“For us not to change it does not need us going to social media to blackmail the government. We don’t need to be social media crusader and on election day, be in your room watching television. We all need to get our voter’s cards and go out on the day of the election to vote.”
Speaking further, the NAPS decried the attitude of the management of some polytechnics towards the newly introduced course titled Psychometric Studies, which is GNS 106 and GNS 107.
Noting that Psychometric Studies will help improve the cognitive capacity of the students to make a life-changing educational decision, the polytechnic students association urged schools’ management not to continue to deprived students from opportunities embedded in taking the course.
NAPS leadership, therefore, charged polytechnic managements to give adequate attention to the course and link up with International Psychometric Centre, Ibadan for proper and adequate involvement in line with NBTE mandate without any delay.
The association, especially, urged the management of polytechnics to desist from fund diversion of the psychometric payment to school accounts and should remit the fee into the International Psychometric Centre account as and when due to avoid unnecessary agitation from the students’ community.
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Polytechnic students not involved in June 12 protest ― NAPS
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