ASUU STRIKE IN HARVARD AND HOME SUPPORT

Recently I took time to reflect on the steady progress and impact of the on-going industrial action embarked upon by the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) vis-à-vis the goebellian propaganda championed by the ever retrogressive Nigerian government, catalyzed by the foul crying of some myopic students against ASUU. Sadly enough, the parochial, perhaps often ideologically handicapped opinions of some parents against the aggrieved university pedagogues are bias. I have discovered among other things that there is need for the bias debaters of the on-going discourse between ASUU and the FG to think beyond the box. The FG on its part has been playing the game of agreement subversion. The unwholesome subversion would remind one of the distasteful glorification of intellectual and cerebral paucity, riling, steady and progressive promotion of mediocrity and the dearth of ideational fecundity, and of course a childishly veneration of skull emptiness.

I was engaged in an intellectually enthralling exchange of ideas with one of my highly artistry brainy, often critical allies, Ademola Adesola when he posited that it was time for us to drift responsibly from writing and speaking rhetoric to taking constructive action with structured thinking and iron clothing to shield ourselves from the sobering metaphor for the ceaseless repudiation and mockery of futuristic tendencies and scholastic deification being showcased by many Nigerian youth. In accordance with the shrewd understanding of Professor Adebayo Williams, the arts of moving away from writing and speaking about unanswered questions to the chemistry of taking actions should be done not in anger but with the view to making the seemingly magic of the past to bear on the morass of the moment. With this in mind, I want to posit that I have since began to take actions on some things but the intellectual shallowness as portrayed by some students about ASUU strike, the utterly fallacious drumbeat of some parents and the dance of shame of the FG which gives ballast to this ratiocination made me to lost the ephemeral immunity I have garnered against my pen-hence the emergence of this vignette.

It appears that our highly revered and often unbelievably cheated university teachers have lost home support-no thanks to some intellectually incarcerated ones among them who often parade themselves as faithful servants in a university in the north central region of Nigeria despite their cerebral nothingness coupled with their bi-annual production of semi-illiterate graduates. It was this revelation that prompted me to push my pen and write a strongly worded letter about ASUU strike and the state of the nation to a friend of mine who is currently a junior research fellow in Harvard University (reminds one of our trammeled thinking student governors in their failed Harvard party). In the letter, I made strong appeal to my friend to help mobilize Nigerian internationals in Harvard University in a peaceful protest to neighbouring media houses in support of ASUU strike and unhampered implementation of Justice Uwais’ Electoral Reform Recommendations.

In case some students and some parents in the hostile quarters against ASUU are still in the cloud as to what the Nigerian populace stands to benefit from ASUU strike, I will painstakingly drop few lines. The strike if supported and its aims are achieved will force the FG to make educational policies that are systematic, strategic and sustainable. The policies would be pragmatic, responsive and result-oriented, continually evolving to address emerging challenges and would be pro-active. The strike if successful, will help reposition the educational system in such a way that Nigerian universities will be best fit to compete shoulder to shoulder with universities in other thriving countries. If the strike has the required massive support-base to make it a success, it will help to restore the lost dignity in the Nigerian educational system, foster the teaching and acquisition of qualitative education, ensure stable academic calendar and ensure the production of highly skilled graduates with brainy skulls and guided thinking! The parents and students on the side of the FG should see the agitations of ASUU as a collective struggle that must be pursued with sense of purpose and constructive criticisms vis-à-vis the expected results. They should see it as something whose benefits are trans-generational.

The strike is a course whose gains are not for only this generation but also for generations to come. So if we fail to leave formidable educational legacies for the generations to come which we can easily achieve through the success of ASUU strike, history books will be there to expose our deeds. The legacies must be defined and refined, particularly in the face of accretions, cobwebs and diplomatic sheens they might collect later in future. The legacies must also be reviewed with the benefit of historical hindsight and changing historical circumstances.

We must go back to the basis, re-couple our educational vehicles with strong and protected educational engines that have unimaginably high resistance to academic corrosion and brain knocking. The new educational vehicles must be anchored by un-derailing drivers of education who have unbending historical logic, unflinching determination, telepathic understanding of the historical forces at play garnished with refined and sieved driving energy. They must in addition be aided by generalissimos of steady educational progress who will be conducting the affairs of the academic arena and will be calling on people to board the progressive educational vehicles. The educational conductors must have un-burnished determination, they must have mental focus and clarity of mind, and they must have the ability to defy earth-pulling gravity and adversity. It is thereafter that we can begin a smooth educational journey that will definitely lead us to our much awaited educational promise land.

LEAVE YOUR COMMENTS BELOW AS ANONYMOUS IF YOU DO NOT HAVE A GOOGLE ACCOUNT. Please do not forget to include your name/location if you are commenting as anonymous.

PERSONAL TREASURE

I am sure we all treasure a lot of different things though a lot of them are just the regular things. In fact, sometimes some of what we treasure the most, we cannot lay personal claim on. Treasures like wrist watches, laptops and family mansions fall within this category and as a result, we fail to treasure some items we should. There some things we have but either has no idea what they are worth or have forgotten why that things should be special to us. Well, right now am been led by a good spirit to highlight some of these things to you.

MAMAS WRAPPER
In this part of the world, mothers often give their children one or more of their wrappers. Well just so you are a foreigner, let me educate you a bit. The only traditional wear for women that transcends all tribes in Nigeria (either blouse or buba) and wrapper so mothers are fond of giving their wards one or more of their wrappers to use as cover-cloth (quilt) most especially if the child is on his way to a boarding house for the first time or travelling. A lot of us have it but don’t remember the significance any more. Well, if you happen to fall in that category, let me remind you. You see, when our mothers give us the wrappers, it’s their silent way of saying-‘hold on to this when you miss my warmth, when you see this, remember that my love is with you anywhere you go and I never cease to pray for you.’ For those of us that still have ours, well agree that no quilt can be compared to mamas wrapper. Single advice- if you don’t have one yet, get yourself one fast.

YOUR HOLY BOOK
The song writer writes- I have a wonderful treasure- a gift of GOD without measure and we travel together. My Bible and I. Need I say more? What about Quran? Very essential too!

PHOTO ALBUMS
Those pictures of you when you were still a baby, the one that has you blowing out your 1st birthday candle or the one with your parents way back. Believe me, it is a treasure because how else are you able to realize what a fine person you have grown into? How else can you remember how thin uncle Luke used to be before he got a job or how much mum and dad must have spent for your first birthday. You see, albums are useful for reflection, rejuvenation, bringing back pleasant memories …. And the list is endless.

YOUR GOOD FRIEND
That person who is close enough to sleep over at your place. That person who has both your parents’ phone numbers stored in his phone. That person that understands you perfectly. The one that know your mood by the tie you are wearing and the one that pray for you always. Don’t take them for granted or forget to tell them how much they mean to you because should you lose them, getting a replacement won’t be anytime soon.

YOUR PHONE BOOK
The treasure here is not in the type of phone neither is it the amount of airtime in it but the numbers. Those numbers that call you just to check up on you, the numbers that remind you with the fact that you have people to lean on. Yes! Those numbers you can call when you need a little rise. Phones may get lost and call credits used up, but contact lists should never be toyed with.

This conclusion is simple. None of the above listed should be missing in our lives.

Written By:
SHOLA UNDIANDEYE

LEAVE YOUR COMMENTS BELOW USING YOUR GOOGLE ACCOUNT OR AS ANONYMOUS IN CASE YOU DO NOT HAVE GOOGLE ACCOUNT.