‘Good people, great nation’ (IV)

I cannot understand why government would bother to go through a series of negotiations and agreement they do not intend to sign. Worst still, I cannot understand why they would fool serious minded intellectuals with text messages to attend phantom meetings, but this is a country where anything can happen. Having said that, the story […]

I cannot understand why government would bother to go through a series of negotiations and agreement they do not intend to sign. Worst still, I cannot understand why they would fool serious minded intellectuals with text messages to attend phantom meetings, but this is a country where anything can happen. Having said that, the story of the neglect of education is the same as the neglect of everything else in this country. Why the neglect of education is particularly dangerous is that, education is fundamental to everything else, if it is destroyed, then everything else is destroyed, even though, our small minded ‘dealers’ think they can send their children abroad anyway just like they can get medical treatment abroad.

While ASUU has been unrelenting in calling everyone’s attention to the Government’s contribution to the poor state of our Educational system, we need to pause and take a look at the contributions of all the stakeholders to this rot. First of all, the university community. I know for sure this will spur some people to call for my head. I know this for sure because of the ‘dogma of being a radical’ which  Sam Amadi articulated as “you must believe some simple facts and never revise the scripts”. Around here, the simple fact is that government alone is responsible for all our ills and you must propagate that lie to be seen as speaking on the side of the people. It is even worse if the issue is about a seeming underdog, it does not matter what the issue is, the dogma of being a radical rules;  ‘never revise the script’.

We know that the allegations against lecturers are not new and neither are they totally unfounded. Some people have said, the language was ‘un-presidential’ (no quarrel with the content),  others think the ‘reputation of our noble lecturers was assailed’! Before we crucify anyone let us take a look at some of what Goke said : “They collect bribe from their students,  grades are awarded on a cash and carry basis,  research projects could be arranged with sums between N250,000 and N500,000, or with sex where female students are involved, they engage in sexual harassment, they swap grades and even award grades and sometimes give whole degrees to students that do not appear in examination halls. At convocations some of this group of lecturers end up at the podium in their capacity as deans to present their students and make the usual introductory statement of presenting students who have been, found worthy in learning and character”. True or false?