The nation is treated to an eighteen-month optimistic plan which, to make matters worse, smacks of abject appeasement and encouragement of violence on innocents. “Let me repeat, and of course I only ask to be corrected if wrong: I have yet to encounter a terse, rigorous, soldierly and uncompromising language from this leadership, one that threatens a response to this unconscionable blood-letting that would make even Boko Haram repudiate its founding clerics. “When I read a short while ago, the Presidential assurance to this nation that the current homicidal escalation between the cattle prowlers and farming communities would soon be over, I felt mortified. “He had the solution, he said. Cattle ranches were being set up, and in another 18 months, rustlings, destruction of livelihood and killings from herdsmen would be ‘a thing of the past’. 18 months, he assured the nation.
I believe his Minister of Agriculture echoed that later, but with a less dispiriting time schema. “Neither, however, could be considered a message of solace and reassurance for the ordinary Nigerian farmer and the lengthening cast of victims, much less to an intending tourist to the Forest Retreat of Tinana in the Rivers, the Ikogosi Springs or the moslem architectural heritage of the ancient city of Kano. In any case, the external tourists have less hazardous options.” Recalling with nostalgia how he – in the company of the late Segun Olusola – journeyed across Nigeria in the pre-war 60’s, mostly out of curiosity, Soyinka said: “But now, would the young adventurous set out to visit the mystery caves of Anambra and its alleged curative pools from mere interest?
“They would think twice about it. It is not merely arbitrary violence that reigns across the nation but total, undisputed impunity. Impunity evolves and becomes integrated in conduct when crime occurs and no legal, logical and moral response is offered.” Narrating his experience with cattle herders, right at his doorstep, recently, he said: “I returned from a trip outside the country about to find that my home ground had been invaded, and a brand-new ‘Appian way’ sliced through my sanctuary. “That ‘motorable’ path was made by the hoofed invaders. Both the improvised entry and exit are now blocked, but interested journalists are invited to visit.
“In over two decades of living in that ecological preserve, no such intrusion had ever occurred. I have no idea whether they were Fulani or Futa Jalon herdsmen but, they were cattle herders, and they had cut a crude swathe through my private grounds. “I made enquiries and sent alerts around, including through the Baale of our neighborhood village. There has been no repeat, and hopefully it will remain the first and last of such invasion. What it portends however is for all thinking citizens to reflect upon, and take concerted measures against.” The Nobel laureate noted that herdsmen are among humanity’s earliest known tourists and must be taught a culture of settlement with their hosts. His words: The leadership of any society cannot stand idly and offer solutions that implicitly deem the massacres of innocents mere incidents on the way to that learning school. “For every crime, there is a punishment, for every violation, there must be restitution. The nomads of the world cannot place themselves above the law of settled humanity.”
University lecturers
under the aegis of the Academic Staff Union of Universities, (ASUU),
Benin zone, have threatened to embark on industrial action over
shortfall in university allocation.
PROTEST: Members of the Academic Staff Union of Universities, ASUU,
during a rally/protest to sensitize students and the public on the
plight of academic staff in the University of Lagos, Akoka, Lagos,
yesterday. Photo by Lamidi Bamidele.
FILE: Members of the Academic Staff Union of Universities, ASUU, during a
rally/protest to sensitize students and the public on the plight of
academic staff in the University of Lagos, Akoka, Lagos. Photo by Lamidi
Bamidele.
The lecturers accused the Federal Government of stoking the embers of
crisis when the university system was yet to fully recover from the
damaging effects of a prolonged strike in 2013.
The union said it was an unfortunate and sad development that the
federal government was contributing to the threat to peace in the
Nigerian university system by not sending enough money to pay salaries.
Zonal Co-ordinator, ASUU, Benin Zone, Prof. Anthony Monye-Emina in a
statement made available to journalists in Benin City, said the use of
co-operative, welfare savings and union dues to make up for the
shortfalls and the ridiculous handouts in whatever guise in place of
salary was unacceptable.
Prof. Monye-Emina said the union should not be held liable for any
crisis in the Nigerian university system.
He noted that most universities were under the burden of severe
financial crisis, stressing that government was yet to proffer an
explanation on when it would end.
Emu a said: “In universities where full salary is seemingly paid,
deductions for co-operative societies, welfare associations, union dues
and so on, come in arrears. This implies that such deductions are
accumulated to be able to make full payment of salary in subsequent
months after which remittance is made.”
“In essence, university staff savings is what is used to augment the
shortfall. It is important to note that this accumulation of
deductions/remittances is exclusive of tax deductions. This implies that
tax deductions are remitted as at when due to the same government that
does not feel obliged to avail the universities the full complement of
their allocations. This development is in addition to shortfall in
running, operational, logistics and other costs.”
Read more at: http://www.vanguardngr.com/2016/04/looming-strike-varsities-asuu-accuses-fg-allocation-shortfall/
Read more at: http://www.vanguardngr.com/2016/04/looming-strike-varsities-asuu-accuses-fg-allocation-shortfall/
University lecturers
under the aegis of the Academic Staff Union of Universities, (ASUU),
Benin zone, have threatened to embark on industrial action over
shortfall in university allocation.
PROTEST: Members of the Academic Staff Union of Universities, ASUU,
during a rally/protest to sensitize students and the public on the
plight of academic staff in the University of Lagos, Akoka, Lagos,
yesterday. Photo by Lamidi Bamidele.
FILE: Members of the Academic Staff Union of Universities, ASUU, during a
rally/protest to sensitize students and the public on the plight of
academic staff in the University of Lagos, Akoka, Lagos. Photo by Lamidi
Bamidele.
The lecturers accused the Federal Government of stoking the embers of
crisis when the university system was yet to fully recover from the
damaging effects of a prolonged strike in 2013.
The union said it was an unfortunate and sad development that the
federal government was contributing to the threat to peace in the
Nigerian university system by not sending enough money to pay salaries.
Zonal Co-ordinator, ASUU, Benin Zone, Prof. Anthony Monye-Emina in a
statement made available to journalists in Benin City, said the use of
co-operative, welfare savings and union dues to make up for the
shortfalls and the ridiculous handouts in whatever guise in place of
salary was unacceptable.
Prof. Monye-Emina said the union should not be held liable for any
crisis in the Nigerian university system.
He noted that most universities were under the burden of severe
financial crisis, stressing that government was yet to proffer an
explanation on when it would end.
Emu a said: “In universities where full salary is seemingly paid,
deductions for co-operative societies, welfare associations, union dues
and so on, come in arrears. This implies that such deductions are
accumulated to be able to make full payment of salary in subsequent
months after which remittance is made.”
“In essence, university staff savings is what is used to augment the
shortfall. It is important to note that this accumulation of
deductions/remittances is exclusive of tax deductions. This implies that
tax deductions are remitted as at when due to the same government that
does not feel obliged to avail the universities the full complement of
their allocations. This development is in addition to shortfall in
running, operational, logistics and other costs.”
Read more at: http://www.vanguardngr.com/2016/04/looming-strike-varsities-asuu-accuses-fg-allocation-shortfall/
Read more at: http://www.vanguardngr.com/2016/04/looming-strike-varsities-asuu-accuses-fg-allocation-shortfall/
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