Following it's earlier report on the rustication of five
members of University of Benin Student Union Government Excos by the school
management led by its vice Chancellor prof. Faraday Orumwense, SILNET NEWS went
round town to gathered reactions by social crusaders across the state.
 |
| UNIBEN entrance /VC |
In his remark, Hon. Blessed Omoegbe Jattoh, Executive Director of Blue Beacon Initiative Africa, passionately
urge students and the Civil Society movement in Edo State to Stand up to
condemn and resist this undemocratic and oppressive act of the management of
the university of Benin. He asserted that “the independence of Nigeria and other
struggles against the military junta in Nigeria were either spearheaded or
hatched by, and with students/ student unions. To allow the management of
Uniben to oppress and dislodge the true spirit of unionism which the
institution have obviously lacked for several years now will amount to a
political and intellectual cacophonism.
ALSO READ: SHAMEFUL: UNIBEN VC Prof. Faraday Orumwense rusticate 5 Students For Exposing His Failure
According to
Hon. Blessed Omoegbe Jattoh, Prof. Faraday Orumwense and almost every other
person in its level of life were beneficiaries of a system that works, nearly
all of them went to school at one time or the other through scholarship. But
today these same persons are proud managers of a dispoilt educational system
poised to bequeath on the next generation a very dead and irredeemable system.
To rusticate
student who embarked on peaceful protest is as good as telling the world that
the University of Benin is an Institution that produce student who are afraid
of their own shadows. Student who cannot stand against bad and unpopular
policies in their institutions of learning how can we rely on same to stand
against the current ills that bedevil the current Nigeria
We must
all stand and defend these innocent students who now stand as the latest
victims of a failed, dispoilt and tyrannical educational system.
Comrade Kola Edokpayi a former student of the ex student of
the University and an Executive member of network of Civil Societies in Nigeria
(NOCSON) asserted that
“The rustication of five Progressive students of University
of Benin is very lugubrious, sardonic and melancholic. It is repugnant to
natural justice, equity and good conscience. Students cannot be rusticated for
protesting peacefully as the right to Freedom of Association and Peaceful
Assembly is guaranteed by the Constitution of Nigeria.”
Sen. Ben. Okoebor, reacting to the earlier silence of NANS on
the issue posited thus. “I have been trying to think were we got it wrong as past
students’ union leader. I am shocked that indeed our generation can sit down to
sell their conscience for 16 bags of rice and 1 premature cow last December, I once cried out that they could just be
eating the future of genuine student union activism. For Osemu Ogbidi the
embattle SUG President and other victimize Executive they sure think they have
been able to disorganize your future but they do not know they have been able to popularize. In their days we
were told that they protested for free meal, free books and free education.
In similar vein,
Comrade Edogun O Omoruyi also asserted that
“For Uniben Management to rusticate the key Officers of the body representing
the students, it shows that there is high level of injustice, infringement of
human rights, autocratic tendency and 'i don't care' attitude and brutal nature
of the Management of Uniben. Does it mean that the students have no right
to peacefully protest or when confronted with unjust and inhumane policies that
are against their well-being from the Management of Uniben?
Rusticating the key Officers of the Uniben SUG is a simple or
indirect way of telling the world that you don't want student Unionism in your
school. It is as good as saying you don't want students' body that will
represent the students and articulate their interests, needs and demands just
because the Management of Uniben wants to impose inhumane policies and criminal
fees that are unaccounted for by them. Nigerian citadels of learning have
become oil companies full of rots turning out half-baked graduates without the
expected knowledge.
The Management of the Nigerian universities are busy
increasing fees and imposing it on the students just to buy luxurious vehicles
and build multimillion Naira houses amidst infrastructural decay. Then they expected these
students to swallow the killer pills and die in silence without exposing their
barbaric Management to the world?
The Management of the Nigerian universities are busy
increasing fees and imposing it on the students just to buy luxurious vehicles
and build multimillion houses amidst infrastructural decay. Then you expected these students
to swallow the killer pills and die in silence without exposing their barbaric
Management to the world?
0 comments:
Post a Comment
please leave us a comment to this post