Comrade Adakole Ochai, President of National Association of Nigerian Students, NANS in this interview with Favour Nnabugwu touches on a number of issues affecting the country and the association including the existing faction and the association’s effort at stemming the tide of insecurity in the country. Excerpts:

What have you achieved so far as NANS president?
There are so many challenges ranging from pressure from the students and the government, and some people that call themselves stakeholders, trying to work against you because they think you are not protecting their interest and all that. But we have been fighting for the students themselves. Recently, we spoke to the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU).

We did that based on the pressure coming from students. It has not been easy reaching students in different institutions. We have 119 institutions, especially institutions accredited by the NANS and we have embarked on campus-to-campus visitation. We have been to the Lagos State University (LASU) and we addressed the LASU issue and so many other problems. Having spoken with ASUU, we have also been updating the media on our activities and resolutions on issues affecting the body.

How did you get into office?
NANS convention was held in Bayelsa and students discovered that most of the people that attended that convention were not students. They were hired by some of our past leaders and some of them were expelled students. Basically, we went to Bayelsa to give an award to the former governor of Bayelsa State, Timipre Sylva.

Com. Adakola Ochai

It is on record that N49 million was collected by the students’ leaders as a result of that award. After that, the Congress of Nigerian Students decided to pass a vote of no confidence on the Bayelsa convention. They annulled it and we decided to gather again in Awka, Anambra State, and the election was held. Two of the people that contested the election in Bayelsa came and contested.

One of the aspirants is from Plateau State, Marshall, and the second called Rough-rider is from Adamawa State. By the grace of God, I won and one of them stepped down for me. And Alhaji too, from Kwara State, contested and I won. They are giving me their full support.

Surprisingly, we began to hear that some people are parading the Bayelsa convention that had been annulled. They are parading the boy. We have evidence against the boy that he is not a student. He has been withdrawn from school, the University of Jos. His name is Mohammed Dauda. He said he is an indigene of Niger State but schooled in the University of Jos.

What actually happened in Bayelsa?
We gathered in Bayelsa for the election and they discovered that the president was not a student. He was expelled from school. The Senate President that emerged was at that time a youth corper. He was undergoing the one year mandatory youth service. And the whole process was marred with violence to the extent that we even lost one of our students during the clash. So it was inconclusive. But Jude Imhagwe and Ini, because before our government, the NANS had four presidents because of the factions, different interest groups.

NANS had four factions: Ini Emembong from Akwa Ibom State, Jude Imhagwe from Edo State, Etuk Bassey Williams from Akwa Ibom State too and Kingsley from Anambra State. Jude Imhagwe and Ini Emembong were the people that conducted the Bayelsa process. We invited Kingsley and Bassey and they came and conducted the Awka election. So, they were presidents of NANS and they duly handed over to us, to our own government as a legitimate government of NANS.

Why the factions?
Yes, we have been trying to conscientize our students. Actually, it has not been easy just like I told you. We have been going from campus to campus, telling them not to believe in him. He is not doing anything in the interest of the Nigerian students.

He is just based here in Abuja. He has decided to come and stay with some so-called stakeholders, people that have never been involved in the student struggle. They are staying here in Abuja, going from one office to another but the NANS is not all about that. The students are suffering. The welfare of the Nigerian students is shattered. So we have to meet the demands of Nigerian students. We are going from campus to campus to know what the problems of these students are so that we can meet these demands.

How far did you go with ‘Nigerian Students Pray’?
First time in the history of the NANS, the first programme we organised was the ‘Nigerian Students Pray.’ Knowing that our country is going through so many problems, all we need is divine intervention. We organised the programme in Makurdi, Benue State, where students came and we gathered and called most religious leaders from different churches and the Muslim Imams also came.

We prayed for the country and addressed the media after the programme. We handed the country over to God. We have been going from campus to campus and we have been able to reinstate the people that were expelled in Kogi State Polytechnic.

What about cultism in Nigerian institutions?
We are actually organising sensitization programmes to make those that are cultists on the campuses see that they have contributions to make in this generation instead of marrying themselves to cult activities. We have one programme this month by the grace of God, ‘Anti-violence rally’ and we intend to organise it in Anambra State.

Nigerian students are going to come from across the nation, to know that violence is not the way forward and that we need to embrace peace and especially, shun cultism.