…declares June 12 for national protest
Highly disturbed by serious security challenges ravaging the country with alarming rate in some regions, the National Association of Nigeria Students (NANS) has called on the Federal Government to close down schools in the North West, and North Central in the country till peaceful atmosphere returns in the areas. NANS stated there could only be education when there is life.
The students’ body lamented that terrorists in Nigeria are gradually sending education to the grave, saying that government has lost control over in-security.
Rather than celebrating Democracy Day on June 12, the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS), directed that all students across the country embark on “a national day of protest.”
The NANS’ National President, Com. Sunday Asefon, who spoke with journalists yesterday in Ado-Ekiti said the country has nothing to celebrate to mark June 12 Democracy Day when students were being killed and kidnapped by bandits.
Asefon regretted it was sad that insecurity has reached a frightening peak, where students can no longer go to school with the guarantee that they would return home safely.
The NANS’ leader said barely 24 hours after students of Greenfield University in Kaduna were released by their abductors, about 200 students of Islamiyya school were kidnapped in Rafi Local Government Area of Niger State.
He said the seemingly incessant and incurable kidnapping of students in the North West and North Central calls for immediate and radical move to find solutions to the predicament.
Asefon, therefore, declared June 11 and 12 as national days of prayers, for the leadership and security levels to conquer banditry, killing and kidnapping across the nation.
“Putting it in the right perspective, the government and security appa-ratuses have failed us; we can no longer trust them.
“Government must convene a national dialogue where people can come with different ideas and proffer solutions to this insecurity issue.
“We are daunted by the endless news of kidnapping of students in their hundreds within the last two years. This development is not only unacceptable; it challenges the very fabrics of our national development, unity, cohesion and portends grave danger to our educational institutions.
“NANS, under my leadership, having considered the continuous threats to the lives of our students and the lukewarm pace of security apparatuses to these nefarious crimes, we regrettably call on government to order immediate, and temporary closure of all schools in the North West and North Central until adequate security is put in place”.
(New Telegraph)
