The leadership of the National Association of Nigeria Students (NANS) has explained why it has suspended its nationwide protest over the ongoing strike by the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU).

The association accused the Federal Government of sabotaging the genuine protests to compel the lecturers to reopen public universities.

ASUU on February 14 embarked on a one – month strike which it later rolled into two months.

At the end of the two months strike, the university lecturers announced another three months strike to enable the government address its demands.

Some of the demands included the non – implementation of the 2009 agreement, failure of the government to deploy the University Transparency and Accountability Solution payment software among others.

NANS Senate President, Chuks Okafor, in a statement on Friday, said: “In the area of ASUU strike. We have done our best in liaising with government agencies but we can only take the horse to the stream but you cannot force it. But as leadership of Nigerian students, we will keep reaching out to the government and leadership of ASUU to ensure this strike is called off soonest.”

Okafor also expressed concern over the inability of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to obey the Supreme Court judgement of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) leadership since 9th of May, 2022.

The students body called on the INEC Chairman, Prof Mahmood Yakubu, to immediately implement the judgement of the Supreme Court on APGA leadership since 9th of May, 2022 without bias or face mass action.

It would be recalled that since 2019 Chief Edozie Njoku has been in court to ensure sustainable development in the party.

However, Okafor said it has been one month since Njoku submitted two subsisting judgements in his favour to INEC, but it is worrisome that INEC has failed to obey the court judgement.

“We call on president and Chief of the Armed Forces of Federal Republic of Nigeria, Muhammadu Buhari to call Professor Mahmood Yakubu and cohorts to order and ensure the sanctity of Nigeria judiciary.

“We are determined to defend and protect this democracy which Nigeria students fought so hard without sweat and blood to enthrone or better still, we call on Mahmood Yakubu and cabal to resign from INEC and join partisan politics,” he added. (The Nation)

Update news