Note: This article was published by the Daily Trust, May 27, 2003

However, let’s us agree here that it is long overdue for both parties to sheath their sword and find a lasting solution to the crisis, which has resulted in the closure of the nation’s tertiary institutions for more than five months now. No serious society would allow academic activities in its educational institutions to be disrupted indefinitely, because schools are the sociopolitical and economic laboratory of any society. If the leaders of Nigeria cannot resolve the dispute what are they capable of doing?

Nevertheless, those who are vehemently opposed to the activities of the academic union (without faulting the intransigence of the overbearing Federal Government) do not seem to appreciate what it is fighting for. It might seem unpatriotic for one to advise ASUU to call off the strike and not to worry any more about the sordid state of the educational institutions. Perhaps, this is what ASUU should do. This is because those who should be educating the society on the need to support the teachers in their battle for better schools are calling on them to quit ‘complaining.’ The implication of this is that ASUU is a bunch of crybabies and whiners complaining about the dismal state of the institutions, which it should not have been bothered with. And ASUU should understand that if it refuses to quit, the political gods in the ruling party would portray it as an ‘enemy of democracy.’

Moreover, the academic union should consider the state of its members, many of whom are now financially handicapped. It should not also bit more than it can chew; its members in state-owned tertiary institutions should find a way to resolve their own problems with their respective state governments.

However, has it occurred to anyone that without support for teachers, in the form of good remuneration and better funding, the society would experience a dearth of good trained doctors, nurses, engineers, architects, lawyers, economists, accountants, teachers, scientists, politicians, social thinkers and enlightened citizenry. Worse still, the educational institutions would continue to lag behind in information technology, and the society could witness many more years of rigged elections, which means the elusion of true democracy in Nigeria. It is important for the society to understand that teachers (from elementary to university level) are the proverbial geese that lay the golden egg. Strangling or choking them means that the society would lose their invaluable services.

Thus, for the nation to have better schools it should support teachers, because they deal with everyone (the good, the bad, and the ugly) who comes through the school door and do their best (often handicapped by limited resources) and send them back into the society as productive citizens. No other organization (except ASUU) would be accused of crying wolf if it "advocates and lobbies" for better conditions in its business. It was not long ago that Chief Olusegun Obasanjo was asking for billions of dollars to buy an airplane, because the one he had would not perform. The nation bought his office a better airplane, and nobody accused him of being greedy.

However, the federal government cries out of a paucity of resources when it comes to funding for the nation’s tertiary institutions. But, if lack of fund is truly the problem how is that the politicians in the society are being showered with rosy severance packages. The ThisDay of May 4, 2003 reported that the politicians who failed in their bid for re-election (and those who refused to re-contest) would walk home with huge severance packages, notwithstanding the mouth-watering furniture allowances they received in 1999. This, in the opinion of this writer, is a misplacement of priority. In its usual face-saving ploy, the Presidency recently claimed that one of the reasons for the jumbo severance pay for the members of Congress ‘was to discourage stealing by public officials through making their remuneration attractive. When you know that you will get something to keep you going after quitting office you are not likely to be stealing public funds" (The Guardian, May 19, 2003). Really! The politicians would not steal public funds? If one should ask, are the politicians the only public servants in Nigeria? Wouldn’t be nice to give everyone the same treatment? What is good for the goose is good for the gander.

The leaders should not only talk of the need for schools to produce high quality graduates; ‘they should put their money where their mouth is.’ They should set high standards and adequately fund schools to achieve them. As in every other industry, any set standard in schools has to be achieved with resources. Thus, teachers cannot improve the standard of education in Nigeria without the necessary support from the society. Those who think that teachers could make miracle in schools without the necessary tools (books, laboratories, libraries, instructional technologies and other teaching tools) should switch position with them and show the world the result.

In serious societies educational institutions are well funded; and they depend on the institutions for new ideas for sociopolitical and economic development. This is not case in Nigeria; here teachers are used and neglected. Is it then surprising that the nation is lagging behind in every aspect of life?

However, if the government cannot fund the tertiary institutions it should shut-up and get out of the way! It should grant them the long debated autonomy and freedom to source funds (collects school fees from students). This writer has noted elsewhere that higher education should not be free in Nigeria (Dike, June 2002, Nigerian Economic Summit Group (NESG) Quarterly Journal). It is not free in many wealthy and advanced countries in the world; in particular, it is not free in the US and Britain. Here university students (those who are qualified and in financial need for their education) have access to varied types of refundable (publicly and privately sponsored) student loan programs to assist them through their school. It is, therefore, time for Nigeria to re-activate its moribund students loan program. The funds raised from school fees could enable educational institutions to update their curricula, procure good textbooks, academic journals, and lab materials. The plain truth is that no person can update and run his/her home or business without financial resources.

In addition, if the leaders refuses to adequately fund the tertiary institutions they will lose the moral right to complain about the low standard of education and the half-baked graduates they churn out yearly. Teachers cannot perform miracle; they can only work with what they have! What teachers need at this point in time are support, not ridicule and condemnation. The educators did not dump the nations erstwhile high standard of education in the ‘trash can’ -the society did with its weird value system. To go back to the Old Glory in education, and to survive as a viable democratic society, Nigeria must accord education the priority attention it deserves, because education is the engine that propels the economy of any nation. Nigeria’s oil and mineral deposits only would not transform the nation into a Super Power; this lofty height could be attained only if Nigeria has enough highly trained, creative, and critical minds motivated to effectively perform their job duties. However, can Nigeria manage the complex democratic system it now fiddles with without enough educated, creative, and critical minds?

Therefore, instead of clobbering ASUU, the society should perceive it as an advocate for high standard of education. Nigeria has the resources to solve its problems if the government is sincere with its avowed war against corruption and economic mismanagement. At a European Commission (EC) meeting to support Nigeria’s anti-poverty, Nicholas Costello (Nov/Dec 2001) stated the obvious: ‘Nigeria has enough money to [support its teachers and] tackle its poverty challenges. If the government can win this [its] battle against corruption and mismanagement, the money will start to turn into functioning schools, health services and water supply, thus laying the foundation to eradicate poverty.’

Center for Social Justice and Human Development (CSJHD),

Sacramento, California