By Ali Muhammad Idris

The Nigerian education sector has been in turmoil for years, with repeated industrial actions by unions like the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), Nigerian Union of Teachers (NUT), and the Non-Academic Staff Union of Educational and Associated Institutions (NASU).

These strikes, aimed at securing improved working conditions, funding, and welfare packages, are rooted in valid demands.

However, the far-reaching impact of these strikes on students, the education system, and Nigeria’s development calls for urgent intervention.

Strikes in Nigeria’s education sector have become alarmingly frequent. From 2017 to 2022, ASUU went on strike at least five times, with the longest one spanning an unprecedented eight months.

These strikes disrupt the academic calendar, leading to significant setbacks for students and causing severe emotional distress, uncertainty, and frustration.

The 2020 ASUU strike, for instance, forced final-year students to spend an additional year in school, delaying their graduation and disrupting their plans for further studies or employment.

The consequences of these prolonged strikes are profound, especially for students. Lost learning hours mean that students are often forced to rush through incomplete syllabuses, affecting their academic performance and understanding. Many students are unable to follow the curriculum properly, leaving them underprepared for future academic and professional challenges.

Additionally, the frequent disruptions to the academic calendar make it difficult for students to plan their education or careers effectively. Constantly adjusting to these interruptions can lead to a lack of motivation, academic disinterest, and even school dropout in some cases.

Moreover, these strikes impact Nigeria’s research output, hampering the country’s potential for innovation and scientific advancement. Research activities often depend on consistent timelines, resources, and student participation—all of which are compromised when strikes disrupt the academic environment. This reduction in research not only limits Nigeria’s academic contributions but also negatively affects its global reputation and diminishes the potential for groundbreaking discoveries.

The economic impact of strikes on Nigeria is equally devastating. When students are kept out of school, parents and guardians face unexpected financial burdens, as they must cater to their children’s extended stay in school. These additional expenses create a strain, particularly for low-income families, who may already be struggling with the high cost of education.

The strikes also prevent graduates from entering the labor market on schedule, resulting in missed economic opportunities for both individuals and the nation. When young people delay their entry into the workforce, Nigeria loses out on potential productivity and economic contributions.

Additionally, the frequent disruption of academic activities deters foreign investment in Nigeria’s education sector. Potential investors and partners are less likely to commit resources to a sector plagued by instability, which further weakens the country’s global competitiveness.

The recurring strikes in Nigeria’s education sector underscore a pressing need for change. To break this cycle, all stakeholders—including the government, educational institutions, and unions—must engage in constructive dialogue and prioritize the needs of students and the nation’s educational stability.

The Nigerian government must allocate more funding to education. These funds should be directed towards addressing infrastructural deficits, improving learning environments, and recruiting qualified staff. Adequate funding will help meet the demands of union members, who rightfully seek better conditions.

Establishing consistent communication between the government, unions, and educational stakeholders will facilitate early resolution of grievances. Regular dialogues can prevent misunderstandings, build trust, and foster a collaborative approach to addressing issues within the education sector.

Rather than resorting to strikes, alternative dispute resolution mechanisms like mediation and arbitration should be prioritised. Such methods offer a way for parties to resolve their differences without disrupting academic activities, ensuring that students’ education is not interrupted by labor disputes.

Effective implementation of education policies, such as the agreement reached between ASUU and the government, is crucial. The government must honor its commitments, as any failure to do so erodes trust and perpetuates the cycle of strikes. Ensuring transparency in policy implementation will build confidence and foster a more stable educational environment.

Nigeria’s education sector is at a critical juncture, and decisive leadership is needed to end the cycle of strikes. President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has the unique opportunity to address this issue head-on and leave a lasting impact on the nation’s educational landscape. By prioritising education reforms and implementing sustainable policies, he can help secure a brighter future for Nigeria’s youth.

Ending the strike culture in Nigeria’s education sector would benefit the entire nation. A stable academic calendar would ensure that students graduate on time, enhancing the workforce’s productivity and fostering economic growth. Additionally, a well-functioning education system would attract foreign investment, further boosting Nigeria’s economy.

In conclusion, the government must take a firm stand to resolve the ASUU strike and prevent future disruptions. Education is the foundation of any society, and a country’s growth depends on the development of its youth. We call upon President Tinubu to act swiftly to stabilize Nigeria’s education system. By committing to constructive dialogue, adequate funding, and transparent policy implementation, the government can create an environment where students can thrive without fear of disruption. The future of Nigeria’s education system depends on it.

 Idris wrote from Mass Communication Department, Borno State University.

By Tony Iji

Dr. Sampson Uche Ogah, president/founder of Masters Energy Group, is one of Nigeria’s leading, patriotic, visionary, and risk-tolerant entrepreneurs today. Since leaving office as Minister of State for Mines and Steel Development in 2022, the former senior banker-turned businessman and politician has been channelling all his time, energy and financial resources to repositioning his company for the future.

His objective is to grow his conglomerate, made up of over 15 subsidiaries with interests in multiple sectors, including oil & gas, aviation, real estate, transport, logistics, consumer goods, etc, to the point where it could add significant value to the national economy. Dr. Ogah was neck-deep into the pursuit of this dream when the removal of subsidy on petrol and floating of the Naira mid-last year threw virtually all economic variables and businesses off balance. While many other existing businesses scaled down their operations, shelved expansion plans, or closed shop altogether, the Masters Energy Group founder forged on. Where others bemoaned the problems, he saw prospects and profits. Instead of being deterred by the immediate negative fallouts of the fuel and foreign exchange policies, Dr. Ogah was propelled into action by them.Thus, early this year, Dr. Ogah convened a Masters Energy Group Senior Leadership Strategy Retreat under the theme: “Innovation, Exponential Revenue Growth by Cost Management and New Product Introduction.” The essence of the retreat was for senior and top-level workers at the leadership cadre to deliberate and strategically decide on innovations and initiatives the organisation was implementing to enhance its business operations.“Masters Energy Group is positioning to expand its business, increase presence in the Nigerian market and ultimately achieve an exponential revenue growth through massive investment, partnerships, and new products,” Dr. Ogah told reporters at the end of the retreat. “We want to go into a lot of business that we haven’t been before; that is why we are having this retreat for us to come together to discuss, to strategize on how this year will be better than last year,” Mrs Patience Dappa, the Group Managing Director of Masters Energy, explained. “We all know that subsidy is out of the way, so we need to look at how we can survive and sustain our business without the presence of subsidy.”Pushing against the odds facing the economy has been the focus and preoccupation of Dr. Ogah ever since. Unfortunately, it is obvious that some people are not comfortable with his bold and strategic repositioning of Masters Energy Group to expand its frontiers and support the growth of the economy. They appear resolved to do whatever is possible to distract his attention, sabotage, and, possibly, bring down the Group’s businesses. One of such heinous acts was the recent re-circulation of a nearly 10-year-old video in which the company was wrongly accused of importing expired rice into the country. A source attributed unearthing of the old 2016 video to one Lauretta Onochie, who started circulating it as a new video, presenting it like the company intentionally smuggled in an expired rice into the country to sell.” Ms Onoche, for those who may have forgotten, was the same woman whose nomination by President Muhammadu Buhari as INEC Commissioner was rejected by the Senate following public protests by Nigerians. Later, she was removed from office as Chairperson of NDDC after serving for only few months. Both incidents arose from questions over her integrity.The management of Masters Energy Group has set the records straight. In a public statement, the company categorically denied this claim, describing it as baseless and a falsehood calculated to damage its reputation. The statement said: “Our company ordered some quantity of rice in 2016 with the value of the consignment duly paid. The consignment was inspected and passed by a reputable international inspection agent prior to shipment to Nigeria. However, by the time the consignment arrived Tin Can Island Port Lagos, the restriction by the federal government of Nigeria on the importation of certain goods (among which is rice), famously referred to as Ban on 41 items, had taken effect; so we were unable to clear the containers from the Customs.”We made various appeals and representations to the Central Bank of Nigeria and Nigerian Customs to grant us a window to clear the consignment; but our efforts were of no avail. The consignment was eventually seized by the Customs in August 2016.In 2019 – more than three years after the consignment has been seized – during a working visit to the Tincan port, the then Customs C.G. (Comptroller-General) discovered the abandoned shipment within the premises, which had since deteriorated due to long exposure to heat in the container and other environmental elements. This was first thought to be a fresh import, but further investigation revealed that the containers have long been at the port and the goods degraded due to over-stay at the port. Our company was absolved of culpability.”The company reaffirmed its commitment to upholding the highest quality and ethical standards and full adherence to all import regulations. “At no point did we import, intend to import, or distribute expired rice to the Nigerian market,” it said. The company has assured that it will not be distracted by the schemes of saboteurs from pursuing its expansion programme, which has been progressing smoothly.Indeed, the Nigerian economy is beginning to benefit from Masters Energy Group’s expansion programme as it has given birth to new and enhanced operations as well as new products and services. One of them is the Joint User Hydrant Installation 2 (JUHI-2), Nigeria’s largest aviation fuel depot with a storage capacity of 15 million litres of Jet A1 fuel, which was commissioned this October. The state-of-the-art depot is a partnership between Masters Energy Oil & Gas Ltd, Eterna Plc, Techno Oil, Quest Oil, Rahamaniyya, Ibafon Oil, and First Deep Water Limited. The facility, which spans 46,000 square meters, is set to revolutionize aviation fuel logistics, offering unparalleled efficiency, safety, and cutting-edge technology. The company’s new services in the aviation sector are not limited to airline operators. The company has also extended personalized airport protocol services and exceptional hotel reservations and tour packages to passengers and tourists through its Cardinal Points business arm. It is also offering energy independence to consumers via Masters Energy solar panels. The solar energy services it provides include expert solar installations, supply of premium solar panels and inverters.Masters Energy Group has also expanded its business into logistics and interstate travel services with the launch of Alsa Logistics Limited, marking a significant milestone in its commitment to delivering comprehensive and reliable services across the country. In the area of manufacturing, the conglomerate is also looking to introduce new product lines like household products, with a projection that, by the end of this year, Masters Energy products would be in every household in Nigeria. The company is also considering exploring opportunities in the export business to enable them to overcome challenges associated with high exchange rate. Similarly, the Group is expanding its footprint in the Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) business. In 2023, it performed the flag-off of the Masters Energy 40,000 metric tonnes LPG storage facility in Port Harcourt, Rivers State. It hopes to complete it before the end of next year. The company is planning to take the oil and gas downstream market by storm with its massive investment, new products, and innovation. Masters Energy presently has about 300 retail outlets across major cities in Nigeria with not less than 50 more outlets scheduled to come on stream before end of this year. Dr. Ogah is not only focused on growing the company but is also developing its management capacity and capabilities. Only recently , he completed a prestigious leadership programme at the University of Oxford with Honours. The remarkable achievement demonstrates his dedication to personal and professional growth and earned him invaluable insights and advanced skills that will, by extension, greatly benefit the company as it strives for innovation, growth, and success. In the face of all these efforts by Masters Energy Group to support the growth of the Nigerian economy and impact the lives of Nigerians, it’s disheartening seeing some dubious individuals trying to roll back the gains made by patriotic entrepreneurs like Dr. Ogah.

By Femi Fani-Kayode

In an article titled “Is Nigeria fuelling Israel’s genocide against Palestinians?”, which was published in Businessday on 30th October, one Suraya Dadoo, who wrote in from South Africa, opened his contribution by quoting our Honourable Minister of Foreign Affairs, my friend and brother, Ambassador Yusuf Tuggar, who he attributed the following words to.

“There is no justification for the carnage that is going on in Gaza… the complete disregard for the proportionality of force that is being meted out on innocent civilians.

This carnage is completely out of hand and totally unacceptable. There is no way to explain the double standards; it has to stop.”

He went further by quoting our nation’s number two citizen, Vice President Kashim Shettima’s words at the UN General Assembly (UNGA) in September, where he said the following:

Both the Minister and the Vice President have done us proud with their courageous words and bold stand and it is a reflection of the fact that the Tinubu administration represents the thinking and has expressed the sentiments of the overwhelming majority of Nigerians and have opted to tread the right path when it comes to the tragic events in Gaza and the pitiful plight of the Palestinian people.

Dadoo went further by writing the following, “The Nigerian government has consistently condemned Israel’s military occupation of Palestine and has been particularly outspoken against Israel since October 7. Historically, Nigeria has been a strong supporter of the Palestinian struggle for liberation, and Nigeria was central in efforts to ensure that Israel was not granted observer status at the African Union (AU). According to sources who were at the October 2021 meeting of the AU executive council attended by Africa’s foreign ministers in the Ethiopian capital, Addis Ababa, Nigeria’s then Foreign Minister Geoffrey Onyeama took the lead in objecting to Israel’s accreditation and urged other member states to do the same.”

Again, this is comforting but he follows it by getting to the crux of his essay and the heart of the matter by dropping the following clanger: “While the Nigerian government has strongly condemned Israel’s military onslaught on Gaza it also stands accused of fuelling the Israeli war machine that had already killed, at the time of writing, more than 40,000 Palestinians through direct violence and bombing.”

To substantiate his point he wrote, “According to a recently released report titled “Behind the Barrel: New Insights into the Countries and Companies Behind Israel’s Fuel Supply,” Nigeria accounts for 9 percent of the total crude oil supplied to Israel between October 21, 2023, and July 12, 2024. Researchers analysed satellite imagery, ship positions, shipping logs, commodity trade flows, information from port authorities, and financial and media reports to track 65 oil and fuel shipments to Israel in that period.”

He concludes by alleging that,”Over 133 kilotons of Nigerian crude were delivered to Israel from Chevron, Eni, Exxon, Shell, and TotalEnergies. Gabonese crude accounted for 22 percent, and the Republic of the Congo supplied 6 percent, but it is Nigeria’s contribution that has raised eyebrows given the country’s vocal criticism of Israel.”

Dodoo’s allegation, if proven to be true, is deeply troubling and needs to be taken very seriously indeed lest we leave ourselves open to his grave charge of complicity in the genocide that is being unleashed on Gaza by the Zionists.

The matter can be resolved by simply banning all crude oil shipments from Nigeria to Israel.

I hereby call on our President, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, to do precisely that and take an even stronger stance against the Zionists by banning all arms purchases from them and terminating any military and/or intelligence advice or services that the Israelis are offering or providing us with.

If he could find the courage to implement a number of bold and much needed fiscal, economic and constitutional reforms and policies such as the removal of the oil subsidy, the floating of the naira, the establishment of autonomy for the local government areas, the implementation of the students loan fund, the numerous tax reforms and most important of all the refusal to go to war against Niger Republic despite the enormous pressure that the Western powers, led by France and the United States of America, put on him to do so earlier this year, he can certainly muster the same will to kick the Zionists out of Nigeria, nullify their pervasive influence in our country and sub-region and sever all trade, economic and diplomatic ties and relations with them.

General Yakubu Gowon, our revered former Head of State, did this in 1973 when he was in power and as Chairman of the then OAU (AU) in order to punish the Jewish State for its attack on the Palestinians during the Yom Kippur War.

For a number of years before then and specifically during our three year civil war, Gowon had viewed Israel with much distrust and suspicion given the covert support it gave to the Biafran secessionists and its complicity in the attempt to dismember and break up our beloved country.

However the straw did not break the camel’s back until 1973 after which the final break took place and diplomatic relations between our two countries were not restored until September 1992 by the then Head of State, General Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida.

I am constrained to say that now is the time to break diplomatic ties with Israel again.

This is the right and proper thing to do in the light of its insatiable compulsion and appetite for mass murder, ethnic cleansing, crimes against humanity, war crimes and genocide and given its insane and psychotic disposition for murdering helpless and defenceless women and children and for killing babies.

Again, this is the right and proper thing to do given the fact that it has not only illegally occupied the land of the Palestinian people for over 76 years and slaughtered and incarcerated millions of the people but has also unleashed what can best be described as the second holocaust against it over the last one year, killing over 60,000 in Gaza alone and thousands more in the West Bank, Lebanon and Syria!

If the world could go to war with Nazi Germany in 1936 as a consequence of the first holocaust, every civilised nation ought to, at the very least, be able to break diplomatic ties with Zionist Israel as a consequence of the second.

Morality, decency and justice demands no less and those nations that insist on applauding the atrocities of the Jewish State and selling weapons of mass destruction to it are not only complicit in its war crimes but are also from the pit of hell and in the service of shaitan.

The Holy Bible says there can be no fellowship between light and darkness. It says we must either choose God or Belial.

It also compels us to resist evil and to fight for the weak, the poor, the vulnerable and the oppressed.

The Holy Quran does the same and is emphatic on the importance of justice for all and support for the less privileged and the vulnerable.

Nigeria can and must NEVER be seen to be complicit in the bestial barbarity that is going on in Gaza or to have relations with the beasts that have relentlessly unleashed it.

Though we have many challenges, ours is a nation of decent, God-fearing, just and right-thinking people who have a long history of standing for the oppressed all over Africa and contributing to the efforts of numerous liberation struggles.

Let us prove to the world once again that that is who and what we are by openly and loudly challenging the barbarity, lunacy and thuggery of the State of Israel at the International Court of Justice, the International Criminal Court, the United Nations, the African Union and all other relevant fora and calling it out for its continuous violations of international law, its disdain for an international rules-based system and its racist, fascist and ethnocentric disposition.

Let us expose its contempt for humanity and human life, its total and complete adoption, espousal and implementation of apartheid as a fundamental principle and cardinal policy in its system of government and its religious fanaticism and proselytising bigotry.

Let us vigorously and aggressively resist its hatred for Arabs and Africans, appalling treatment of Christians and Muslims, rejection of the two-state solution, desire to ethnically cleanse, wipe out and totally eradicate and eliminate the Palestinian race, its intention to establish a ‘Greater Israel’ whose borders would stretch from Egypt to Iran and its heinous crimes and unspeakable atrocities in Gaza, the West Bank and Lebanon.

These are concrete and cogent steps that we as a people and nation can take to contribute our quota to the collective fight against the tyranny and oppression of the Zionists and I believe that we are still big and strong enough to take them.

May God guide and protect us in this noble endeavour and may history and posterity be kind to us.