Posted by According to NANS, the National Association of Nigerian Students, students in Nigeria are not prepared to let planned protests interfere with school schedules.
Lucky Emonefe, the association’s national president, made the statement during a town hall meeting in Abuja on Wednesday. The meeting was intended to facilitate communication among students, youths, and members of the civil society organization in the lead-up to the scheduled protest on August 1.
Together with Mr. Osahon Okunbo, chairman of the Wells Carlton Hotel and Apartments, NANS organized the town hall gathering.
Emonefe cautioned the country’s youth to respect the law and not participate in protests.
Our academic pursuit is very important to us, and we are not interested in anything that will hinder our current academic schedule. We want to continue with our studies.
Protests are not the way to go since they may be easily manipulated, leading to disturbances in public order and damage to private property.
We are extremely hungry, circumstances are tough, and there are severe economic measures, even though we disagreed with those who called for demonstrations.
“Our belief is that we can engage the government in a constructive dialogue. We are urging the government to review and address certain policies,” he stated.
According to the NANS president, the young of the nation were able to air their problems through the town hall meeting, which the organizer deserves praise for.
Sunday Ashefon, the country’s senior special assistant to the president on student affairs, urged students and adolescents to skip the scheduled protest on August 1st.
He stated that the fact that students and youths gathered for the gathering demonstrated that the younger generation cared about the federal government’s initiatives to alleviate the country’s burden.