Education

Usama Abdullah

Following the Joint Admission and Matriculation Board’s (JAMB) announcement of this year’s cut-off mark for joining Nigerian public universities, many people have taken to various media to poke fun at the board as well as disparage the entire country for the continued decay in its education sector.

Obviously, what informed the board to reduce the cut-off mark to a minimum of 140 is the terrible performance of the students in the University and Tertiary Education Matriculation Examination this year.

Even though the reduction calls for sympathy for the nation, those commentators have gotten it wrong by deriding the board and gloating over the students’ poor performance. 

We cannot get it right when we only decide to laugh off this dysfunctional system. We are clearly, experiencing the outcome of an embarrassing failure in our education sector, and this will take us a long time before recovering.

Some people believe that students nowadays don’t read hard. And that they usually “cheat” their way to tertiary institutions. This could be true to a certain extent, and I agree with them. However, I also agree that the teachers are also quite blameworthy. 

It would be a grave injustice to attribute the failures of the students to their teachers. But there’s a point we all must consider before leaping to conclude that the blame lies with the students alone.

Like I have said earlier, students may have been faring below the expectations of their parents and teachers today, thanks to the advent of TikTok, Snapchat, and Facebook Reel, among other online and offline distractions.

Yet the parents and teachers are partly the causes of such poor performances. The reason is that some teachers don’t deserve to teach because they are either not properly trained or unfit for the teaching profession.

Many of them lack teaching methods. While some of them just got themselves into the profession accidentally. You often hear of accidental teachers; we happen to be in large number at our public and some private schools.

No thanks to our politicians who have fouled up the recruitment system. This kind of teachers don’t teach to transform the students, but to get the chicken feed they usually take home as salaries.

When you go to those schools in which those unqualified teachers work, you will find them wearing fancy clothes and flaunting expensive phones in front of their students, and that nonchalance promotes unlawful student-teacher relationships.

Unknowingly, such a prodigal and nasty attitude help compromise the young impressionable students. The problem associated with this is that the students would be seen emulating what they saw those teachers doing. Within the blink of an eye, the students would be wild and tough to tame. 

On the other hand, many parents seem to exhibit a kind of devil-may-care attitude toward the upbringing of their children.

They mollycoddle their children to the extent that they begin to forgive and forget all that the children do, be it good or bad.

Well, this type of parental neglect is another major cause of the backwardness of the children at school and in society. Because when they get home, the parents won’t care to ask them about their studies, nor find out how they’re really performing.

When some parents are invited to PTA meetings to discuss important things and chart the way out to help improve their children’s educational standards, they barely attend or give out frivolous excuses for their irresponsibility.

These are the things parents need to correct in order to prevent their children from descending so low or getting petty scores in their results. 

In the same vein, the government too contribute hugely to the retrogradation of our education sector. It’s sad and painful that we’re cruelly ruled by people who are apparently unconcerned about what has become of the nation.

The leaders are only good at forcing half-baked policies on the regular citizens, which will only favour them and their families. 

Looking at the precarious state of our public educational institutions and the prolonged but unresolved ASUU-FG debacle, you will understand that the government is doing nothing to refine our rotten education sector.

Instead of making noise or taunting the students for their low performances, we should assist in our own little ways and hope for the best.

Usama Abdullahi writes from Abuja. He can be reached at usamagayyi@gmail.com.

By Muhammad Aminu

Kano State Governor, Abdullahi Umar Ganduje, has settled outstanding fees for Kano State students undergoing postgraduate studies in universities in Cyprus and France.

The Governor has also awarded another N3m reward to a student, Suyidi Sani, for his sterling performance in the just concluded Young Nigerian Scientists Presidential Award.

Suyidi, an indigene of Nasarawa local government area of the state, emerged 7th and was the only northerner among the first 10 participants in the competition.

While presenting the money, Kano State Commissioner for Higher Education, Dr Mariya Mahmud Bunkure, said the student had gained admission to study at Bayero University Kano after scoring 303 in the Joint Matriculation Examination.

She said Kano State Government has assured that it will sponsor his postgraduate studies after completing his first degree programme.

She maintained that the state government is committed to uplifting the standard of education to global standards.

The commissioner for youths and sports, Alhaji Kabiru Ado Lakwaya, said the state government was committed to the development of education.

He added that the government had set up a committee to compile a comprehensive report on bursaries where millions of naira had been set aside to clear outstanding internal payments.

While receiving the cash, Suyidi Sani said he would continue to put more effort and do everything possible to be among the best students at Bayero University Kano.

He applauded Kano State Government, the entire state executive council, his parents and teachers for encouraging and supporting him.

By Uzair Adam Imam

Jobseekers in Nigeria have opened up to The Daily Reality on how some institutions in the country are degenerating into a kind of ‘Sodom and Gomorrah’, where officials allegedly request ‘sodomy’ in exchange for a job offer or promotion.

The job seekers decried how they suffer in the hands of corrupt officials who ask for a bribe in exchange for job offers or, worse, sex from female and even male job seekers.

However, they alleged that most of these ‘gay’ officials are important office holders that nobody would ever think will indulge in such heinous acts as they look and act responsibly in public.

The job seekers decided to narrate their harrowing experiences after we reported on buying and selling of job offers in Nigeria, published on March 2, 2022, which went viral.

The Daily Reality reported how the sale of job offers decimates graduates’ chances of securing jobs in Nigeria, where the national economy has remained increasingly stagnant.

According to a recent report by Bloomberg, unemployment in Nigeria has surged to the second-highest on the global list, jumping to 33.3%.

Professionals have argued that there is a need for urgent intervention to save the country from an impending danger posed by the exponential increase in unemployment.

Register with the Gay Zone Pyramid; Get Employed

Isma’il Muhammad (not real name) recounted how one Managing Director of an organisation in Kaduna wanted to sodomise him and his friend for a job offer in November last year.

He said, “In November 2021, we got a connection to meet the Managing Director (MD) of one big organisation in Kaduna State. When we arrived, we were introduced to the man in his office.

“The man promised to get us employed. He said we look very young and charming. So we were very excited to hear that from him, unknown to us that the man was gay. So he brought out job offers. But he requested we had to offer him something in return.

“We were all surprised. We thought this man meant we had to buy the offer or, at least, pay him a certain amount of money. But, to our utmost dismay, this man said we had to register with the GAY ZONE PYRAMID.

“However, we declined, and that was the end. We left his office mouth agape and without being employed,” Muhammad said in dismay.

Another job-seeker, who swore to God that he would rather die hawking than commit such evil, confided his 2020 experience in our reporter.

He said someone who pretended to care about his condition and wanted to find a better place for him sent him to a particular organisation for an interview in Kano.

He said, “Fortunately, I have all the requirements. While I thought I would be automatically employed, the man invited me to his office and confessed that he was “gay”.

“Angrily, I insulted him. I still regret knowing him. Thus, I forgot about the job.

Another source, Hashim Tijjani, said someone who promised to employ him and send him overseas had wanted to sodomise him, but God saved him from the man.

He said the man often bitterly complained that he did not use to call him as a way of showing concern to a boyfriend, the development that the guy said had confused him.

He added, “The man used to invite me to the Mai Rabo Hotel in Sabon Gari, Kano. He used to give me money to lure me. He once accused me of not being that romantic to him.

“As things escalated and I feared I might fall into his trap, I decided to give my phone to one of my friends, who told him I passed on. Since then, he stopped calling my line,” he added.

Workers seeking promotion in the same trap

According to a source familiar with the incident, the sodomy was not only limited to job-seeking. Workers seeking promotion also suffer a lot.

He said bosses nowadays ask their subordinates for sodomy before they promote them in various workplaces across the country.

He said, “My friend working with a Nigerian security agency confided in me that he failed to get promoted for declining his boss’s request for sodomy.”

He stated that his friend is still yet to be promoted. However, he had decided that he should rather die without promotion than compromise.

I declined my aged-nurse political ambition over sodomy – politician

Also, a renowned politician in Kano disclosed how he threw his aged-long political ambition over sodomy.

The politician who preferred anonymity revealed that he wanted to contest for a certain political position during the 2015 General Election after he retired from his civil service but was forced out after his political godfather solicited for sodomy in exchange for the ambition.

He confided that he was pretty perplexed and could not help but quit the race as things went beyond his imagination.

He said, “I nursed this ambition over the years, but I can’t help but withdraw from the race as my political godfather confessed that he is gay. But I see no reason to ruin my image for a so-called worldly political ambition.”

The man said he had met all the requirements and was economically stable to contest, but he would instead give up and concentrate on a business.

According to a source, who claimed that he was requested for sodomy to get a job back in 2020 in Kano, the issue of gay officials terrorising workplaces and institutions is known to many people, but they are only afraid to speak.

He stated, “You know things like this are known to many we are all pretending as if nothing goes on. Our bureaucratic system is utterly flawed.

“So, I am no longer looking for any job or favour from anybody anywhere. That is why I confidently expose the bad elements.”

‘Sodomy leads to mental disorder’

A psychiatric doctor from Aminu Kano Teaching Hospital (AKTH), Dr Mubarak Haruna Idris, raised concerns that the act of sodomy may lead to mental illness.

In an exclusive interview with our reporter, Idris said that people who prefer the same sex might suffer from anxiety, depression and psychosis.

He stated that the behaviour “leads to other mental illness. For example, usually, these kinds of individuals tend to hide it [what they do] from others that they have a preference for their same sex.

“So, they tend to have this kind of fear and whenever it revealed. The kind of difficulty they get from their family and how people see them will make them get a mental illness like anxiety, depression and if care is not taken, psychosis.”

They are at risk of anal cancer, HIV other sexually transmitted diseases

Dr Idris also cautioned that the behaviour is associated with many health risks such as anal cancer and HIV, among other sexually transmitted infections.

Idris said, “This behaviour is associated with some health risks. One of the commonest is the risk of sexually transmitted diseases, HIV, hepatitis, syphilis, gonorrhoea and other sexually transmitted diseases. In fact, the risk of getting such diseases is higher when compared to normal vaginal sex.

“So, therefore, there is a high risk of sexually transmitted diseases. And this is due to the nature of the anal canal, which is not designed for such activity, and it can’t resist such activity that usually takes place during intercourse.

‘And then another thing is that there is a risk of getting an injury to the anal area. And when there’s injury, an infection can quickly set in, so one can end up having an infection at the anus, which, if care is not taken, can even spread to other parts of the body. There is also a high risk of anal cancer.

University don frown at the act

In an exclusive interview with our reporter, a lecturer at the Department of Business Administration and Entrepreneurship, Bayero University, Kano, Dr Mu’az Hassan Mu’az, lamented the development.

Mu’az, who frowned at the revelation, lamented that the demand for carnal knowledge to give a job offer is a serious problem that needs to be eliminated.

He also decried how the Nigerian polity is experiencing a painful decline in most of its economic activities, which may not be far from poor governance in recent years. 

“It’s unfortunate that the unemployment rate is skyrocketing in Nigeria like never before.

“Many youth graduate year-in-year-out, but without jobs to lean on. Thus the labour market has become so competitive, where only the connected get jobs.

“It’s this trend that ushered us into the era of job offer sales and other unscrupulous demands for carnal knowledge of both genders for job offers and promotion in the workplace.

The issue is alarming

Dr Mu’az also stated that if the trend continues unchecked, it could lead to numerous problems. He stated thus:

 “1. employment of people with mismatched qualifications for the job requirement. By extension, it will affect productivity.

“2. It will also lead to unprofessional development of the crop of future leaders in organisations. You may realise that those employees who are sidelined because they don’t comply with the demands of their superiors may rise to the ranks without the experience and expertise of leadership.

“3. It creates a corrupt society. As people get employed through the window, they’ll continue the gospel of corruption in their job undertakings.

“4. It will create an unserious atmosphere for students right from the university because nobody would bother to study for good grades since the jobs are for sale and not good qualifications.

“5. People’s sexual orientation might be affected due to the incessant demands for carnal knowledge of young men and women. This situation exposes people to diseases that can cause death.

“There are many adverse effects of sales of job offers and sexual demands for promotion in the workplace.

Way out

Dr Mu’azu proffers the following solutions:

“1. Job opportunities should be advertised in the dailies and electronic media;

“2. There should be equitable salaries in the country depending on the level of education of workers. This will discourage people from struggling to get white-collar jobs.

“3. A law should be enacted to address culprits, i.e. the person paying and the one receiving the money for job offers.

By Muhammad Sabiu

On Thursday, the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board approved the cut-off scores for the nation’s universities and polytechnics.

This decision was reached following a contentious meeting that included representatives from the National Universities Commission, the Ministry of Education, the National Board for Technical Education, and others.

The cut-off grade for polytechnics is 120, while universities will require 140.

Recall that, according to prior reports, Professor Ishaq Oloyede, the JAMB registrar, disclosed that just 378,639 of the 1,761,338 candidates who took the 2022 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examinations got a score of 200 or higher.

Oloyede further stated, “JAMB allowed awaiting results candidates to register and sit for the 2022 UTME. These candidates can’t be considered for admission on awaiting result status. They must present their O’level results on the board’s portal before the commencement of admissions”.

By Hamza Sulayman, PhD

One of the most difficult questions to answer among Nigerians is “How much is your salary?”. It does not matter who asked the question; the answer is always tricky. It might be a father asking his son or daughter after spending a fortune paying for their education, or a wife asking her beloved husband. The reason behind this varies from one person to another.

I came across a US-based content creator (IG: americanincome) who moves around the cities of the US asking strangers about their annual salary. To my surprise, they always answer right away and specifically to the last dollar. He asked some follow-up questions, like what did you study? And from which university, how many years of experience do you have? And what advice will you give someone who wants to follow in your footsteps?

To me, that type of content creation is amazing because it provides the young generation with factual data on how they can achieve their goals, which is much better than what the guidance and counselling departments of schools and universities can offer. That is, if the department exists.

My recent interaction with some youth led me to believe that they are after the money or, as they say, “secure the bag”. So, for example, if you are willing to get $150,000 per year, you should work as a Data Analyst, Model, or Software Engineer. If you are humble, you can be a high school teacher and earn about $42,000 a year. If you have a higher taste, you can be a doctor or dentist and rake about $200,000 to $300,000. There are other non-formal sectors with high income, like a professional barber earning $300,000 (I was surprised too) and a sneaker dealer earning $150,000. Top on the list was a luxury watch seller that makes $1,200,000 yearly.

Enough with the numbers, can you answer the question? How much is your salary? Many people cannot answer the question because they don’t even know. After all, what they received is not what is on their offer/pay slip, or the amount is laughable. Some people don’t answer the question because of what people might expect from them. I remember one of my colleagues. He told me that when the salary scale of academic staff was circulating on social media, it became a blessing for him because his family and extended family saw his salary as a Professor and decided to reduce the responsibilities placed on him.

Although in Nigeria, what you study is not entirely relevant to where you work, having a guidance and counselling advisor or a mentor is still advisable. Find someone you want to be like in the future and ask him to mentor you. Learn from their strengths and weaknesses and be a better version of yourself. Lastly, choose a career path that will make you happy, whether it is about the monetary aspect or otherwise.

Hamza Sulayman is a postdoctoral research fellow at Zhejiang University, China. He can be reached via hamza.sulayman@gmail.com.

By Auwal Mustapha Imam, PhD

Nigerian politics should copy ASUU politics. There’s no union, party, association, society or any group in Nigeria that has the structures as firm as that of ASUU. None has united, tolerant and harmonized structures as ASUU. ASUU is mindless of the religion, region, ethnicity or tribe of who becomes its leader, the only thing ASUU members are after is, someone that has the capacity to face and challenge any inappropriation, misconduct, injustice or insincerity from the powers that be.

The leadership has been like that since its inception. No one cares wether or not the leader is a Muslim/Christian or any tribe. If the leader is a Christian from the South, he challenges the powers and addresses the problems of every Muslim lecturer from the North, devoid of consideration of his faith. This goes vice versa.

When my teacher and mentor Dr. Nasir Isa Fagge, a Muslim from Bayero University, Kano was the President of ASUU, he faced and challenged the then President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan, a Christian from the South. None of either ASUU members or Nigerians complained that he was harsh because the President was a Southern Christian. All they were after was the result and the struggle.

Now that President Buhari, a Muslim from the North is the President, the two consecutive ASUU leaders Professor Biodun Ogunyemi (immediate past) and Professor Emmanuel Osodoke (the present) are fiercely challenging the Buhari’s government for the betterment of education in Nigeria, where both Muslims and Christians from all angles of the country can benefit. None of either ASUU members or Nigerians are complaining that the strike lingers because a Northerner is the President. All we are after is the result and the struggle.

Whereas, in Nigerian politics, one’s religion, region and ethnicity are scrutinized and looked at first before even his intellectual capacity. This has thrown us into a deep mess that led us to underdevelopment and public service abuses. Every organization recruits not based on merit, but connection, relationship and nepotism. This can never allow us to establish a structure that will ensure transparency and good governance.

ASUU’s structure, opinions and decisions are both descending and ascending. All deliberations from the local chapters ascend to the zone, then to the national. Likewise, all communications and decisions descend from the national to the zones and to the local chapters. Every member of ASUU is a stakeholder and all opinions are listened to and respected. This is why it is difficult for government to break the structure and penetrate with any inducement to corner the loyalty of some members to the agreement of government’s policies against ASUU.

ASUU’s structure enables unity and enforces loyalty to decisions. If your voice is heard and respected, you have no reason to go against the decision you took part in. This is why every member is loyal.

My master, Professor Mutari Hajara Ali of Physics Department BUK, once told me how he used his Vespa then for commercial “achaba” to survive the harsh policies of the then government of no-work-no-pay against them. I know many lecturers who are currently into commercial transportation services with their vehicles to survive the policy and endure the strike.

To all ASUU members, struggles and sacrifices are part of the job. Hence, nor starvation can force ASUU to retreat, unless its demands are met. Many of us are into hardships, but to us, the struggle needs to reach a logical conclusion rather than back down because of hunger.

Aluta Continua!

By Muhammad Aminu

The Federal Government has denied giving any ultimatum to the Minister of Education, Malam Adamu Adamu, to bring an end to the lingering industrial action in public universities.

Senior Special Adviser to President Buhari on Media and Publicity, Malam Garba Shehu, said in a statement on Wednesday that there was no ultimatum given to the education minister to end the strike.

He accused the media of being deceived by their sources by giving definite time, saying the minister only suggested two or three weeks or even less.

The statement noted: “Neither during nor after the meeting was any ultimatum given to the Minister of Education.

“During the meeting, the Minister of Education requested that the Minister of Labour hands off the negotiation to allow him lead and conclude what he had earlier on started with the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU). And he promised that he could get an agreement within the shortest possible time, possibly two to three weeks.”

“It is a pity that almost all media houses allowed themselves to be deceived by interested sources that are not the authorized spokesmen of the government.

According to Shehu, the Minister will carry all the necessary stakeholders who can realistically work to end the strike as the government doors are open.

“In carrying out this assignment, the Minister will carry along all relevant ministries and agencies with statutory functions and duties relating to the issues involved.

“The Presidency is optimistic that agreements can be reached in even a shorter period if all parties/stakeholders are not unrealistically obstinate. We appeal to the parties to work together to end the strikes.

“On the part of the administration, all doors remain open for dialogue and the resolution of the issues.”

The statement called on the media to desist from spreading misinformation on the matter.

“We appeal to the media not try to spread misinformation. The orchestrated media narratives seeking to present an entirely different picture, attributed to sources, in the last 24 hours are not helpful at all.

“The outcome of the meeting held by President Muhammadu Buhari on Tuesday with relevant Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) to end the agitations by university unions ought to be beyond spin-doctoring and conjectures, it added.

By Muhammad Aminu

The National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS), South-West Zone, has said it would join the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) in protest to pressurise the federal government to end the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) strike.

In a statement issued by NANS Coordinator and Public Relations Officer Adegboye Olatunji and Awoyinfa Opeoluwa, which was made available to newsmen on Tuesday.

The NLC had earlier vowed to embark on a nationwide protest on July 26 and 27 in solidarity with the trade unions in the Nigerian public universities and others.

The NLC President, Ayuba Wabba, who made the disclosure in a circular jointly signed by Mr Emmanuel Ugboaja, General Secretary of the Congress, on Sunday, said the protest was in line with the decisions of the National Executive Council (NEC) meeting of the NLC on June 30.

ASUU and other trade unions in the education sector have been on strike for over five months over the alleged failure of the Federal Government to keep to the agreement entered with the unions.

The demands of the striking workers include issues bordering on funding of universities, salaries, and earned allowances of lecturers.

However, the NANS leadership in the South-West zone called on students across the country to join the NLC in the nationwide protest in solidarity with ASUU.

NANS added that it would “not keep silent and watch our future being ruined by the prolonged ASUU strike.”

It stated: “It is timely and urgent to issue this statement today with a view to putting an end to the lingering strike action by ASUU. We want a total reformation of the educational sector.

“The Leadership of NANS, Zone D, has taken it upon herself to categorically stand against the dilapidated state of the educational sector in Nigeria.

“We are at a time when Nigerian students have lost hope and do not know what’s next on the radar. ASUU strike has been on for over five months without any hope of resumption.

“We have also waited for so long to see if the Federal Government will dance to the music of Nigerian students who have been clamouring for an end to the ASUU strike, but the reverse is the case.

“We’ve had several press conferences, granted several interviews, held several meetings to plead with both ASUU and the Federal Government, and held several peaceful protests across the Federation.

“According to the commandment of solidarity, we’re on the last ‘Cs of Aluta,’ which is confrontation. This is the time to call on all Nigerian students across all zones to join the NLC in solidarity to end the ASUU strike on Tuesday, July 26, 2022, and Wednesday, July 27, 2022. Nigerian students are tired of the long overdue strike action.

“Consequently, all NANS cadres and stakeholders, zonal leadership, Campus Committee Chairmen, Student Union Government presidents, Nigerian students, and the general public are hereby put on high notice to mobilise, organise and get prepared to be part of the movement,” NANS said

By Ahmad Deedat Zakari

President Muhammadu Buhari has reportedly intervened in the ongoing impasse between the  Academic Staff Union of Universities, ASUU, and the Federal Government. 

Presidential Spokesperson Femi Adesina posted on Facebook on Tuesday, July 19, 2022, that the president was in consultation with ministers and government officials over the lingering ASUU strike.

“President Buhari in consultation with Ministers and other Government Officials over [the] lingering ASUU Strike in [the] State House on 19th July 2022”, Mr Adesina posted. 

In attendance in the meeting with the president were the Minister of Education, Adamu Adamu; the Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Zainab Ahmed; the Minister of Labour and Employment, Chris Ngige, Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Isa Pantami; the Head of Service of the Federation, Folashade Yemi-Esan; the Chairman of National Salaries Income and Wages Commission, Ekpo Nta, and the Director-General Budget Office, Ben Akabueze.

Sources in the presidency confirmed that the president had directed the Minister of Education to resolve the industrial crisis within two weeks.

It can be recalled that ASUU embarked on strike on February 14, 2022, which has crippled the academic and commercial activities in all the Nigerian universities.

By Kasim Isa Muhammad

Someone I will not mention by name forwarded memes written in the Hausa language to my WhatsApp number. The content reads: “Tunda naga level coordinator din mu ya sa Shadda a status, na karaya.” This means “I lost hope upon viewing the brocade on the status of our level coordinator.” At first glance, of course, one would laugh it out. But, on second and more critical thought, the memes are a deliberate attempt to ridicule members of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), whose salaries have been stopped for the past four months or so by President Buhari-led government.

That is one of the several unhealthy memes spreading on social media about ASUU members and their predicament due to the strike. Unsurprisingly, the person who intentionally shared this meme and his likes are bent on making caricatures of ASUU members. This explains the level of irresponsibility and how mean people can be.

In the first place, a university lecturer that converted their social media page for the sole purpose of business enterprise signifies that the lecturer in question is responsible and utilizing the strike effectively. When did engaging in business become a subject of ridicule? Or a sheer violation of the code of conduct?

Let me educate the public a little. The job description of all Nigerian academics includes teaching, research, home and community service, or any other duty as assigned by the Head of the Department. The work has been made flexible to enable lecturers interested in other genuine businesses to complement the paltry salary they receive each month.

Notably, lecturers in departments that are practice-based, such as law, medicine, mass communication, theatre, fine arts, and engineering, to mention a few, have the upper hand in multiple sources of income. This is because they engage in private practice outside the university job, which serves as’ Plan B’. 

Sadly, a portion of the blame goes to the government for reducing the profession to ridicule and making it less attractive because of the absence of a decent salary and deliberate stoppage of salaries whenever members embark on strike. Nothing like this can happen in a saner society.

Kasim Isa Muhammad is a student at the Department of Mass Communication, University of Maiduguri.