Elder Statesman and founder of Afe Babalola University, Ado-Ekiti (ABUAD), Afe Babalola, has taken a swipe at the Federal Ministry of Education and the National Universities Commission (NUC), for ordering a mass closure of Nigeria’s universities because of the forthcoming elections in the country.
In a statement by the director of corporate affairs of ABUAD, Tunde Olofintila, said Babalola was particularly miffed that the ministerial directive to shut all universities in Nigeria could be issued to NUC without any notice or consultation whatsoever with the Vice Chancellors, proprietors and board of trustees of all private universities, major stakeholders in the country’s educational landscape.
He said, “The forced closure of Nigeria’s universities by the Minister of Education and the NUC has done irreparable damage to students of Nigerian universities.
“Their problems have been worsened by scarcity of money by Banks and Automated Teller Machines (ATM), all of which made transportation back home more dangerous than ever before.
“Of course, the illegal closure has adversely affected the curriculum particularly in respect of private universities which are reputed for their predictable academic calendar and absence of strike actions.
“Nigeria appears to be oblivious of the time-honoured maxim is that if you want to destroy a nation, you don’t need bayonet, bombs or nuclear warheads. All you need is to destroy the education of the nation.”
Commending civilised nations for prioritising how not to disturb academic calendar of universities, Babalola recalled the events surrounding COVID-19 pandemic which shook the entire world to its very foundation between November 2019 and the better part of 2020 as a result of which the then British Prime Minister, Mr. Boris Johnson, stated loudly that: “COVID-19 is a disaster, while the closure of schools is more disastrous.
“Keeping schools closed a moment longer than is absolutely necessary is socially intolerable, economically unsustainable and morally indefensible.
“Without resumption of formal education, a generation of children is likely to have its employment and earning prospects blighted,” he said.
Babalola insisted that the minister has no statutory power to issue a directive to NUC to close down Nigeria’s universities for the adduced reasons.
“The minister may give the commission directives of a general character relating generally to particular matters, with regard to the exercise of the commission of its functions under this Act, and it shall be the duty of the commission to comply with such directives.”
