The incessant strikes in public universities have attracted the attention of students of private institutions in the country. They believe that as long as the ambitions of their contemporaries are threatened, their own future, as well as the country's economic development is not also assured, especially with the rising cases of violent crimes among youths. TUNBOSUN OGUNDARE and MOJEED ALABI write.
In an unusual manner, the disruption of academic activities in public universities nationwide occasioned by the six-week-old strike by the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), has caught the attention of students in private universities. Since their institutions are not affected by the strike, one may wonder what their concern is.
Apart from enjoying smooth academic programme, these private universities' students seem to be better positioned for job opportunities after graduation because they are not only children of the ruling class, they are also within the age brackets usually specified for job seekers. However, these privileged few, as their counterparts in public institutions are wont to call them, do not want to see it that way.
In what some of them likened to the former Apartheid South African lifestyle, they believe the separate world of opportunities they now enjoy may not last for long.
"This is true because as long as our friends and colleagues who are not privileged to be in private universities are idle, they can vent their anger on the public and shatter the relative peace the nation now enjoys."
Eromhonsele Michael is a 21-year-old graduate of Covenant University (CU), Ota, Ogun State, who was recently awarded the university's best graduating student with a cumulative gradient point of 4.93.
Michael, like many of his classmates is unhappy with the present situation in the public universities, where he said many of his friends attend. He told National Mirror how much sacrifice his parents had to make to send him to Covenant University, where he had initially declined to study.
"My original plan was to attend the University of Benin (UNIBEN), in Edo State, and that is for two reasons. Apart from the fact that I grew up in Benin, I also thought that UNIBEN, with necessary facilities would make me the structure engineer I had always dreamt to be.
"However, my parents appealed to me to follow my sister's footsteps by attending a private university and preferably CU just because of the frequent strikes in public universities, and today I am grateful for their wise counsel," Michael disclosed.
Being able to complete his academic programme within the stipulated four years' duration made Michael happier, but he is still not comfortable that his counterparts in public universities are still unsure of when to graduate.
"We cannot be happy because fingers are not equal and if our friends and colleagues who should either be celebrating their own graduations or joining us in the celebration don't know when they will be graduating, there is no basis to be overjoyed," Michael stated.
He appealed to the Federal Government to look into the crisis in the nation's education sector by overhauling the entire system as the requisite for building a country that can compete with the developed global economies.
Similarly, the former Secretary-General of Babcock University Students' Association (BUSA), Ojo Damilare, said without addressing the incessant strikes of workers in the public tertiary institutions in the country, "Nigeria's aspiration of becoming one of the first 20 economies in the world by the year 2020 will only be a mirage."
According to him, there is little the private universities can achieve in terms of the teeming population of students attending public schools in the country and if care is not taken, the little progress being recorded by the private universities can be easily disrupted by the idle youths who he said could become violent when the gap between them and their privileged friends continue to get wider.
"The current situation as regards our public universities cannot be the concern of the affected students alone. They are our friends, brothers and sisters, and we cannot fold our arms as if nothing is happening.
If we think we are privileged and we close our eyes against their plights, when idleness turns them to touts and bombers, then we will all be victims.
"So, we need to appeal to our government to consider real reform in the education sector and address the issues as raised by ASUU. We must also tell the lecturers too that the rot of many years cannot be addressed in one day. The task of building Nigeria should be for everybody," Ojo stated.
Also, a female student of Bowen University, Iwo, Osun State, who does not want her name in print, said the situation in the public institutions had made private institutions to increase their fees beyond the reach of many. She said private university students in the country are only paying for regular academic programme and not quality education as touted by many.
"It is just unfortunate that things are not working properly in Nigeria. Most of our private universities are only universities by name without teaching facilities. But we cannot complain because we are used to an education system that does not guarantee job opportunities after graduation."
Oluwaseun Lawson, a 300-level student of Mass Communications, Ajayi Crowther University, Oyo Town, Oyo State, is unhappy about the development, saying delaying of students unnecessarily on campus is detrimental to the society.
She would have loved to attend public university but opted for a private's despite the huge tuition. She said the case of incessant strikes by categories of workers or students protests at public universities which constantly lead to disruption of academic calendars discouraged her.
"My mum in particular strongly opposed my choice of a public university just because of frequent disruption of their academic calendars," she disclosed.
"Now some of my friends, who I could also call classmates studying at the University of Lagos, Akoka; Lagos State University, Ojo; University of Benin and so on, are at home doing nothing just because their lecturers are on strike.
They have still not concluded their 200 level and neither do they know when to while I am already in 300 level," Oluwaseun explained.
National Mirror
The whole strike stuff must just stop as soon as possible cos the students are getting really fed up....We have to take education more seriously