By Patrick Anyanwu
Some Enugu parents have called on the Federal Government and the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) to end the union’s prolonged strike and stop delaying students’ progress.
The parents made the call in separate interviews with the News Agency on Thursday in Enugu.
Some of them said they were sad and pained as their children sat idly at home while their peers in private universities were making progress in school.
Mrs. Marbel Onuchukwu, a widow who has two undergraduate children said it was painful that the disagreement between ASUU and the Federal Government had impacted negatively on her children’s education.
Onuchukwu said the prolonged strike had held down the progress of many undergraduates, especially her two children who would have been graduating next year.
Mrs. Joy Agwu, mother of an undergraduate at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka, said frequent strikes by ASUU had made students spend more years than the statutory duration they were expected to spend in school.
Agwu said that the incessant strikes hurt employment opportunities since age was considered important for job seekers.
She said the strikes had increased the crime rate and made some of the youths engage in fraud, cyber-crimes, and gambling.
“The Federal Government and ASUU should as a matter of urgency call off the strike because a handful of varsity students are going about without direction,’’ she said.
Mr. Chidi Ozor, a father of a 200-Level student of Nnamdi Azikiwe University, said he was devastated by the prolonged strike, but hoped it would come to an end in no time.
“The situation is painful, but there is nothing we can do other than to be persuading and calling on government and ASUU to have a rethink and call off the strike for the betterment of our children and the society at large,’’ he said.
Mrs. Monica Eze said the strikes had made her daughter remain at home and had caused an additional financial burden.
Parents and their children are at the receiving end of the strike because our children are in the public universities while others studying in private universities have no issues about strikes,’’ Eze observed.
