UPDATE ON #OAUsaysNO 3rd July,2014 “The most ordinary cause of people’s mistake is their being too much frightened at the current danger and not enough so at that which is remote” -Cardinal de Rets With utmost sense of civility and venerations from the depth of spiritedness, we salute the resilience coupled with the doggedness of the entire Great IFE students ever since the management ‘decreed’ the closure of school on the 18th June 2014 on account of alleged violent protest by peaceful Great IFE students of which the entire students have been protesting against this militaristic and anarchistic closure. The leadership of the union realised the consequence of keeping mute in the face of injustice on the coming generation of students of Great IFE and student’s movement at large, thats why we have been embarking on actions through various means, crying out aloud to the whole world to come to our aid. On 21st June the leadership of the union invited pressmen to campus to take pictures of the entire environment as evidence to debunk the propaganda of alleged attempt to burn down the senate building and violent protest levelled against the union by the management. The activities of the union in combating this obnoxious policy attracted intervention from Joint Action Front (JAF) through meeting of all unions on campus on 26th June on the need to collectively fight to save public education. In a bid to further clear the air on allegations and to tell our own side of the story to the whole world, the union leadership embarked on media engagement at Channels TV on the 28th and a press conference on the 29th June of which our journey to Lagos witnessed union leaders involvement in a motor accident but the Almighty God in his infinite mercies prevailed! However, the leadership of the union who have been operating within the ambit of law also recognised the need for our institution’s protection by contacting legal luminaries like Barrister Bamidele Aturu of Aturu Chambers and Barrister Christian Love of Kolawole & Partners Chamber both in Lagos of which they have been serving as legal counsel/advisers to the union. It is equally pertinent that the entire Great IFE students know at this point that the Senate President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Senator David Mark has intervened by referring this issue to the Senate Committee on Education as it was communicated to us through his letter dated 23rd of June 2014 with reference NASS/S/SP/PA/COMPT/03/II/043 which was in response to our letter to National Assembly calling for their intervention. Also as a result of the mounting pressure, the Senate constituted an Investigative Panel to investigate this increment saga and they have as their Term of Reference duty to meet all stakeholders on campus of which we are one. Our attention has been drawn to the rumoured July 7th deadline for the payment of fees. We want to categorically state to our dear students that there is nothing of such as of now and that if deadline will arise, it is conventionally after matriculation of freshmen but if the management later comes up with that, it therefore further will expose the callousness of the management to the world. The union leadership cannot but also correct the notion of some individuals that we embarked on strike action when obviously the case is one of militaristic closure of school by the University management. Also of more worrying nature/concern is the activities of some individuals online, whose accounts are either owned by the management or by their agents in the studentry discouraging other students interest in the struggle and accusation of union leaders of fighting for their selfish interest. The union frowns at this and condemn this act in its entirety as we remain committed to fighting against commercialization of education. Since the government parrot around that ‘Free Education policy’ has been operational in Nigeria, so why the astronomic charges in Nigerian public universities? We are fighting to save public education from not being taken away from the reach of the poor. Past increment by the management should be accounted for, why are they afraid of doing this? Don’t we have other innovative means of generating money, why not explore this means? Why shift the burden to the poor? The poor should not be made to pay for the failure of an irresponsible government. All we have been fighting for is education for all irrespective of their economic status. Also on the accusation that the union caused the closure of school, does it mean that students should always keep mute in the face of injustice? So what is the essence of the tertiary education we are receiving? Closure of school and victimization remain an attack on students movement in order to continue to couch and prevent them from rising against injustice anymore of which we will say categorically at this point that may never come because university/tertiary education is not meant to train or breed zombies but people with liberated mind that will serve as the conscience and consciousness of the society. Once again Great IFE! For the avoidance of doubt, the union leadership has been an advocate of diplomacy, lobbying, negotiation and as such initiated same several times in the course of this struggle, but the management frustrated all attempt by, inter alia, their late responses to events. An instance is the letter written to the management by the union dated 10th June 2014 to re-open negotiation which did not receive any response not until students started protest on 16th June and had resolved in their congress of 17th to stage another protest for 18th June before a letter with no agenda and venue came inviting the union for a meeting on 19th june. It should also be noted that the school was shut down the day before the meeting. So where is the sincerity on the part of the management? This time also the union is still open to dialogue, a dialogue based on mutual respect and collective interest- not threat, imposition or blackmail because we all desire peace but our own emphasis is on peace with justice. For peace without justice is only temporary. Let he who wants peace prepare for war Greatest IFE! ‘Let us always carry our sword in one hand and the holy branch in the other, always ready to negotiate but negotiating while advancing’. Negotiation must be backed up by actions, the more reason we have refused to keep mute. To set the record straight, if the school is re-opened today and the management left the increment unattended for, the students will still stand against this obnoxious policy until our agitation yields desired result. Thus, the fear is not just about resumption, but about solving the fundamental cause of the crisis- the increment. Meanwhile a congress of southwest tertiary institution has been fixed for Monday 7th July 2014 by the leadership of NANS Zone D at Ibadan Poly where issues affecting tertiary institution in the region and in particular OAU of which days of national actions will be declared. We enjoin all Great IFE students in the environs to join us at the venue of the congress. However the union leadership has been exploring the option of dialogue through our legal counsels and other influential individuals to ensure timely resolution of the fee hike and immediate re-opening of the varsity. Apart from the following actions and moves are others that leadership of the Union will finalise in its meeting tomorrow. Also note that your questions and suggestions on the yesterday’s twitter conference are being taken into consideration. Such forum to be convened at regular intervals. La Lucha Sigue………….. Signed: Bamidele Oludare J. PRO Shittu I.Olatayo Secretary-General Ibikunle Isaac M. President
Posted on: Thu, 03 Jul 2014 21:00:34 +0000
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