CHIEF Mrs. Rita-Lori Ogbebor is a prominent woman activist. In this interview, she stated that incessant industrial actions in tertiary institutions, cannot fix the decay in the education sector. Rather, the Academic Staff Union of Universities, ASSU should resort to other ways of pressing home their demands, noting that frequent strikes have remained inimical to the sector. She spoke to CHARLES KUMOLU

HOW can the incessant labour actions in Nigeria’s tertiary institutions be stopped?

I feel very bad that ASUU is always going on strike based on salary increment. The effect of their strike impacts negatively on our children. For instance, in most courses where they have to spend four years, the children spend eight years because of strike.

And you know at the end the children come home, seat with us and become frustrated. Some of them vent their anger on their parents. Some become robbers while the politicians use them for thuggery. The ranking of Nigerian universities is nothing to write home about. This calls for concern. One is not proud to know that Ghana is better rated than Nigeria.

The psychological effect is bad on mothers, especially when we know that things like that can be avoided. As an employer, I’ve discovered that our children are not receving the best. A BSc accounting graduate for instance, does not know the rudiments of accounting. The grammar of the English graduate is outrageous; their reasoning is bad and they don’t talk with confidence.

Children are sent to school to get better education but when after school he cannot raise his head anywhere in the world as an educated person, then it’s a big issue. So, this has become a bother. I am not pleased with the prospect of another strike. I queried the rationale for the frequent a recent forum. I was told that it is not only about salaries, but infrastructure in the university system and that all qualified teachers have left the country.

I had to tell them that if that is the case, they have to be articullate and make us better informed, because what always comes to mind any time strike action is mentioned is lecturers’ salaries. Even if you are fighting for our children, you must carry us along so that we know what you are fighting for. So what I am thinking is how do we get ASSU to work with the parents and achieve better education for our children.

What was the system like in the past?

Rita Lori

Everything was done very consciously to ensure that we catch with europeans. We did catch up but when the founding fathers were suddenly take away, things changed. For instance, during our time, the Awolowo would fly to most countries to monitor our people, who were on scholarship in foreign nations. And by the time they were returning, they know also that they were returning to get jobs. There was that consciousness, doing everything to make this country catch up with the white man’s country.

Proper guidelines

After the coup everybody was in disarray; the leaders who were to give the proper guidelines were no longer there. From then things started going wrong in every sector, and education is a major casualty. Instead of giving the nation visionary leadership, the leaders that followed were more concerned about power. Tribalism came in and all other things became tribalised.

When it became clear, it became a matter of federal character. They lost focus and concentrated on politics. Money was now the thing, position was now the thing, whether you are qualified or not does not matter. If you can push politically, you can get anywhere. I think this is where everything started to go wrong. And this is what is going on now with a lot of policy makers.

They are hardly qualified for their positions, so how can they give good leadership. Since the situation is getting worst daily, those who can afford send their children abroad to school, while some lecturers who feel they should earn better go to other countries to teach where they are well paid and to satisfy their academic pursuit. The problem is not only in education. It affects all spheres of our lives. We have to start putting round pegs in round holes and square pegs in square holes.

Education is so important because once we have lost focus in education, that is the end. With education, you build a future and better generation. You mould a society morally and otherwise. As a result of the absence of morals and the collapsed standards, children are being sent out of the country to get better education. With the way things are, I can’t see light at the end of the tunnel yet.

People like me are worried, not just because our children are not getting the best education, I am also ashamed that our children are going to lesser countries to learn. And they are being ridiculed. For instance, these African universities are charging fees that we find difficult to pay.

Those countries charge them as foreign students. And when someone, who schooled in Ghana comes back home and there is an interview, he would be employed while those who schooled in Nigeria are not employed. What does that say about education in Nigeria? Where do we go from here.

In addition to your suggestion that schooling abroad should be outlawed, what other suggestions do you think can bring to an end the recurring strikes?

Corruption is the main problem. If we can target corruption and bring it to minimal point today, we can make a headway. If we didn’t have surplus money in the hands of some people, especially the lawmakers, the fashion of sending children abroad to school, would not be rampant.

If there is a law preventing them from sending their children abroad, they will be mindful of what is happening in the country. They will now be forced to ensure that the education sector is fixed. The situation is such that the very structure of Nigeria is threatened by corruption.

For example, this people need foreign exchange to send to their children, if CBN and other agencies, tighten up our foreign exchange, they will not have too much money to send their children abroad.

Who is the issue? ASUU or the Federal Government because, many have argued that strikes have never achieved anything meaningful in the education sector?

The system is faulty. I think I feel for the lecturers. Do you know the pains the lecturers go through when their students who are now lawmakers earn higher than them. Some of these political office holders are not better qualified. So, one understands the lecturers viewpoint.