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The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has kicked against the move by Federal Government to reopen schools across the nation amid the coronavirus pandemic.
Speaking with newsmen on Monday in Ota, Ogun State, ASUU President, Prof. Biodun Ogunyemi called on the federal government to first address the challenges facing the education sector before considering reopening the schools.
“The federal government must lead and show the ways by meeting the conditions for reopening of schools before any school can be allowed to open, because COVID-19 pandemic is a health challenge,” said Prof. Ogunyemi.
“When it comes to public health, it is something that should not be left in the hands of individual, but the Federal Government must take the lead.”
The ASUU president said he finds it worrisome that the federal government do not have the financial capacities to meet the conditions outlined by the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC), yet it is considering reopening the schools.
“It is suicidal to reopen schools now, if the federal government itself could not meet the conditions spelt out by NCDC and World Health Organisation (WHO). The nation will expose the innocent children to risks which is avoidable,” he said.
Prof. Ogunyemi further appealed to the government to provide the running funds for the principals and head teachers so that they could provide some of the required facilities in their schools before reopening them.
He identified the constraint of inadequate funds by many parents which, according to him, would hinder them from providing some of these amenities needed for reopening of schools.
He therefore called on the federal government tell Nigerians the steps they intended to take in reopening schools.
