Protest as recurring decimal

Protest can be defined as a statement or action expressing disapproval of or objection to something. It is mostly carried out by members of the public. Most protests are peaceful, although they could turn violent at some point of provocation or irritation. There is no government in the world that will not pay attention to […]

Protest can be defined as a statement or action expressing disapproval of or objection to something. It is mostly carried out by members of the public. Most protests are peaceful, although they could turn violent at some point of provocation or irritation.

There is no government in the world that will not pay attention to its citizens’ protest of any kind. In Nigeria, there has been a worrying trend of protests carried out by young, vibrant and energetic citizens.

Please look at these trends

1). The National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) recently staged a solidarity protest that paralysed academic activities at the University of Lagos (Unilag).

The senate of the university had recently rusticated some executive members of its Students Union Government (SUG) for allegedly spear-heading a previous protest that shut down the institution for several weeks.

2). The management of the University of Ibadan (UI) decided to rusticate one Michael Tunji-Ekpeti, a 500-level Petroleum Engineering student, who allegedly led a protest against the school in November, 2015.

During the protest, an enraged male student said, “’I am not ready to leave this campus until the injustice against one of us is addressed.”

3). Crisis erupted at the Fidei Polytechnic, Gboko, Benue State, when management said students who failed to pay their school fees were not allowed to write examination.

The management said some defaulters threatened shutdown and so it promptly drafted in the police to forestall any uprising. At the same time the school was shut down.

Students, however, shot back, accusing the management of being impatient with the defaulters.

Some debtor students had rushed to pay their tuition on the day of examination, only to be refused writing the exams on the ground that management would only accept receipts issued by its bursary unit rather than mere bank tellers. Property valued at N1.2bn was destroyed during the ensuing crisis.

4). Workers and students of the Federal University of Technology Akure (FUTA) in Ondo State clashed as the crisis over the invitation of the Vice Chancellor (VC), Prof. Adebiyi Daramola, by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) rage.

The protest disrupted academic activities as it was carried out by NASU, SSANU and NAAT. But the SUG rose in defence of the VC and the bursar.

5). Ondo State University students blocked roads in the state protesting the 500 per cent increase in school fees.

You may say I did not mention any university in the North, but I am just trying to keep the article short.

However,  there had been protests at the Federal Polytechnic Bida, Niger State; Ahmadu Bello University (ABU) Zaria; University of Jos, Kaduna State Polytechnic, etc. Most of the schools are federal institutions, which means the student population is cosmopolitan.

Therefore, the present government should start doing something or rather do more to stem the tide or nip it in the bud by addressing urgent issues that need no  mentioning here.

A group of unemployed youths is a very dangerous army that the country is breeding, hence the nation is sitting on a keg of gun powder.

Time is precious…tick tock, tick tock, tick tock!

 

Zamani Bobai Gankon from Kaduna State – [email protected]