School Reopening: FG Experimenting With Poor Nigerian Lives, Says ASUU

The Academic Staff Union of Universities on Wednesday insisted that it is not ripe for schools to reopen in the country.

The union said the Federal Government’s directive for schools to reopen across the Federation amid the coronavirus pandemic could endanger the lives of poor Nigerian pupils.

ASUU National President, Prof Biodun Ogunyemi, made this position known while featuring on Channels Television’s programme, Sunrise Daily.

Ogunyemi said:

What we are trying to do now is a crash model – an experimental approach. We want to experiment with the lives of poor Nigerians – children of the poor. Many of us in my bracket – maybe middle class – our children don’t fall into that category. And that is probably why we cannot appreciate why we need to do the basic minimum.

“Are we saying that we should open schools without decontaminating the schools? For a government that could go openly to decontaminate streets, to decontaminate markets? Are lives in the schools not as valuable as those working on the streets? We need to do the basic minimum; it is not about income for teachers, income for workers here – it’s about what we need to do to avert disaster.”