ASUU President Prof. Emmanuel Osodeke condemned the hardship created by the newly designed naira introduced by the Central Bank of Nigeria, describing the country’s politicians as “selfish, unpatriotic and self‑renting.” In a statement, he said Nigerians are gasping under the suffocating atmosphere created by the ruling class, noting that governments at the federal, state and local levels appear enamoured of policies that aggravate the suffering of the populace.
“Our union, the Academic Staff Union of Universities, has had cause to condemn the anti‑poor policies of governments in the education sector,” Osodeke asserted. He highlighted that the ruling class has virulently attacked ASUU for insisting on adequate funding for universities and morale‑enhancing remuneration for academics. Meanwhile, the children of the poor are increasingly aware of these injustices, as evidenced by a wave of anti‑fees protests resonating across campuses. He warned that the new wave of brain drain, dubbed the “Japa syndrome,” is closely linked to the debilitating working and living conditions faced by academics and medical personnel—people whom other nations cherish as invaluable assets. The situation is worsened by anti‑labour policies such as “no work, no pay” and “divide and rule,” which undermine collective bargaining.
Osodeke welcomed the Supreme Court ruling that halted the February 10 deadline, saying it should mitigate the aggravated suffering of Nigerians. He noted that the crisis has affected every sector of the economy and will require serious effort by developmental economists to fully assess its magnitude. He compared the Central Bank governor Godwin Emefiele’s “cash‑elimination” tactic to India’s 2016 policy, which had unsavoury consequences, and praised the Supreme Court for siding with suffering Nigerians whose lives would have been further compromised by Emefiele’s policy.
The president also lamented the scarcity of naira, the non‑availability of petroleum products, and the fraudulent subsidy regime, adding that local refineries could operate if the leadership had the will. He warned that as Nigerians continue to endure socio‑economic injuries inflicted by unpatriotic, selfish, and rent‑seeking politicians, the country sinks deeper into poverty, unemployment, preventable diseases, insecurity, ignorance, and misery.
In the face of life‑threatening stagflation, the political class carries on as if nothing is amiss, allowing the cankerworm of corruption to take deeper root among those entrusted with the nation’s collective patrimony. While rejecting speculation about “fifth columnists” seeking to truncate the transition, ASUU calls on all Nigerians—regardless of language, tribe, or religion—to unite in deepening and defending democracy.
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