Osun Monarch Who Pacified Protesting Students Says ‘It’s Not Safe To Keep Youths Idle’

The Olowu of Kuta, Oba Adekunle Makama Oyelude, has said Federal Government and Nigerians must join hands to find a permanent solution to the crisis in the education sector especially the issue of frequent strike by lecturers in tertiary institutions.

Oyelude, who is one of the prominent monarchs in Osun State said in an interview with THE WHISTLER on Wednesday that it was dangerous to keep the youths at home idle, saying they could be manipulated to engage in negative ventures.

He said many suggestions had been made about how the problem of funding could be partly addressed and said he was in support of any solution that will not exclude students from indigent families from having access to quality tertiary education.

Oba Oyelude said, ” Our children have been out of the universities for the past seven months and that is not good.

“I’m again using this opportunity to appeal to the relevant authorities to please save the future leaders of our nation from becoming the vanguard of destruction by considering all various options in resolving the problem.

“Some.have suggested that fees should be introduced and government must institute scholarships for brilliant students and there should also be bursaries as well. Also, that loans should be made available for those who won’t be qualified for scholarships.

“These loans should be repaid when they are working. With that nobody will be denied access to education because they are from poor families and fees could be used to address the problem of lack of facilities.

” It is not safe for us as a nation to keep our youths idle. We must all unite to find a permanent solution to this problem.”

The monarch’s convoy had run into the roadblock mounted by National Association of Nigerian Students on the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway on Tuesday.

The students were protesting the seven-month old strike by the Academic Staff Union of Universities.

The monarch, who addressed the students commended them for being reasonable and for giving him the audience to talk to them as a father.

He urged them to open the road to ensure free flow of traffic and promised to take up the issue with the authorities concerned.

Oba Makama later wrote on his Facebook page: “Earlier today we ran into a massive protest by National Association of Nigerian Students, NANS, on the lingering ASUU strike.

“Their massive protest grand traffic to a halt on the ever busy Lagos- Ibadan Expressway. As a father and natural ruler I had to lead other traditional rulers on my entourage to address the organisers of the protest so as to ameliorate the suffering of the commuters on the ever busy highway.”

Recall that ASUU had embarked on a national strike since February 14, 2022 over the Federal Government’s failure to implement its demands on salaries and allowances of lecturers; improved funding for universities as well as the adoption of UTAS against the government’s preferred payment platform — Integrated Payroll and Personnel Information which they said is fraught with corruption.