National chairman of the Action Democratic Congress (ADC), Ralph Nwosu, has asked President Muhammadu Buhari to source funds as it did for elections and railways to resolve the lingering Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) strike.
“The federal government should look for money, just as it looked for money to execute elections, build rails from Nigeria to Niger, to sort out ASUU. Human development comes before infrastructural development,” he said.
The Buhari regime has, over time, been criticized for borrowings to fund infrastructure projects in the country, including the construction of rail from Nigeria to the Niger Republic.
In a statement on Monday, Mr. Nwosu said it was regrettable that while a series of meetings had been held between the government and the union, no tangible result had been achieved.
He urged the federal government to declare a state of emergency on the ASUU strike.
“We, therefore, call on the federal government to, as a matter of urgent concern, declare a state of emergency on the matter and find a lasting and permanent solution to the ASUU strike,” he said.
While saying that he was saddened by the unresolved dispute between the federal government and ASUU, the ADC chairman said it was about time the government found a lasting and permanent solution.
He attributed youth unrest and other anti-social vices in some parts of the country to the ongoing ASUU strike, which had been on since February 14.
Mr. Nwosu said it was unfortunate that other staff unions in the university sector had joined the wagon of embarking on industrial action.
(NAN)