ASUU, Says Fuel Crisis Persists Because Buhari Jettisoned Campaign Promises
ASUU, Says Fuel Crisis Persists Because Buhari Jettisoned Campaign Promises
……Proposes Socialism To Ease Economic Hardship
The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) on Monday took the Muhammadu Buhari administration to the cleaners, says fuel scarcity persisted because he jettisoned his campaign promises, advising that since government has shown ineptitude in the way and manner it should govern the country, exploring a socialist economy would not be out of place.
ASUU in advancing argument in favour of socialism, said that under the mock federalism, capitalism or global liberalism that Nigeria practises, ideological theories that should have catapulted the country to greater height have in essence been ignored, thereby working against the nation.
Nasir Fagge, ASUU’s President, at an interactive forum with reporters in Abuja on Monday, said the situation is currently taking its toll on Nigerians, especially on the cost of food, transportation and electricity power.
“There’s urgent need to return to ideological and theoretical classes in colleges and universities, for our youths, by academics, as was the practice in the 1980s.
“In more general terms, it is imperative that all forces committed to the reconstruction of Nigeria led by the labour movement forces, begin immediately to embark upon popular political education. The reconstruction of Nigeria into a socialist welfare state is the true alternative to enslavement to global liberalism,” he said.
The group stressed that an alternative political framework that articulates explicit ideologies had become imperative going by obvious failure of the two major political parties that contested the last general elections, which clearly embraced the neo-liberal ideology of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank.
“We would have mitigated these crises if government re-introduced direct sale, direct purchase in the oil sector and make specific unambiguous pronouncement on petroleum subsidy,” Fagge stated.
He said it would be insensitive for government to contemplate increase in the prices of petroleum products, noting that the union would not hesitate to join Nigerian workers to resist such increment until it is reversed.
