The Gombe State Chapter of the Nigeria Labour Congress, North-East Nigeria, on Tuesday, July 26, 2022, joined the National protest declared by its national body to protest against the month strike embarked upon by the Academic Staff Union of Universities, ASUU.
The protest in Gombe presented a crowd of placard-carrying students and workers, who chanted solidarity songs as they sing and dance in front of the Government House entrance.
The Nigeria Labour Congress Protest is being carried out because ASUU is an affiliate union of the Labour Congress.
The NLC protest in Gombe State was led by the State Chairman, Mr. Adamu Musa, who presented the Letter of Protest to the representative of Governor Muhammadu Inuwa Yahaya, the Secretary to the Gombe State Government, Professor Abubakar Ibrahim Njodi, seeking the help of the Gombe State Government to lend its voice in finding immediate and lasting resolutions to the conflict between the Federal Government and the university lecturers.
It will be recalled that the lingering strike embarked upon by the Academic Staff Union of Universities, ASUU, since February 14 this year, has been keeping university students at home ever since.
Addressing the Secretary to Gombe State Government, Professor Abubakar Njodi who represented Governor Muhammadu Inuwa Yahaya, Mr. Musa said it was rather unfortunate that students across Federal and State universities in the country had been kept at home as a result of the impasse between the federal government and ASUU.
Consequently, he said the protesters were at the Government House in Gombe to present a letter of protest to Governor Muhammadu Inuwa Yahaya for onward transmission to President Muhammadu Buhari for immediate resolution of the ASUU strike, to enable universities students to go back to school.
“We are here to present a letter to the Governor of this state, Muhammadu Inuwa Yahaya for onward transmission to President Muhammadu Buhari for immediate resolution of ASUU strike so that our children can go back to school. ASUU is our affiliate union and we are out on the street today protesting in solidarity with them,” said Musa.
Professor Njodi, who received the letter on behalf of Governor Yahaya, promised to deliver the letter to the governor for onward transmission to President Buhari in Abuja.
“Let me first apologize on behalf of the Governor, he was unable to be here to address you because he came back from Abuja very late yesterday but I assure you that your message will be delivered to him for onward transmission to Abuja,” Prof. Njodi said.
Some of the inscriptions on the placards read “Enough is enough, your children are studying abroad while you deny our children’s constitutional rights and that of generation to come” and “#End ASUU, SANU, NAAT and NASU strike permanently and get our children back to school.”
