AN OPEN LETTER TO NIGERIAN STUDENTS & A
PLEA TO SUPPORT COMR YAAMABANA LEGBOSI
FOR NANS PRESIDENT

my fellow comrades,
There is no better time, other than
now to come together in an
atmosphere of this nature to jaw-
jaw on the FUTURE OF THE
NIGERIAN STUDENT.
Education is the bedrock of
economic, social- cultural and
political success of any nation.
Hence, no serious-minded nation
dares toil with the welfare of its
students. It is easy to identify a
failing State by the attention it gives
to its educational sector.
As students, you are the light of the
world. The entire scope of
humanity earnestly awaits your
manifestation. All genuine
discoveries in science, economy
and governance were manifested
by students or body of students.
You may want to start asking
yourselves about the legacies that
you and your colleagues intend to
give our nation.
In order to have a full grasp of the
future of Nigerian students, it
would be proper to take a brief
voyage into the past and present of
Nigerian students, to learn
therefrom, before forecasting into
the future.
The history of emancipation of
Nigeria from the oppression of
colonial rulers, military juntas and
corrupt civilian government is
replete with the outstanding roles
of Students’ Unionism. I remember
with nostalgia the efforts of the
indefatigable Comrade Segun
Okeowo, who in 1978 led National
Union of Nigerian Students (now
NANS) in a struggle against the
educational policies of the military
regime. The students fought on all
fronts and brought education to the
front burner of national discourse.
What struck most Nigerians was
the way the students carefully
deployed and marshaled their
arguments to fault the educational
policies of the government.
The Nigeria students in 1989 also
picked the gauntlet against the
Ibrahim Babangida regime over the
crippling effects of the Structural
Adjustment Program, SAP. Indeed
the Nigeria students virtually raised
the populace to action when they
trooped out in Lagos, Kaduna,
Ibadan, Kano, Enugu and other
major cities to protest against SAP
and also reversed some of the its
provisions, thereby ensuring that
some palliative measures were
provided for the people.
We cannot also forget in a hurry
the active role Nigerian Students
played in the actualization of June
12 1993 presidential election, won
by Chief MKO Abiola of blessed
memory. We were at the barricade,
chanting in an organized manner to
demand for the release of the
detained president MKO Abiola and
his mandate given to him.
Nigerian students in the days of
yore also played vital roles in the
liberation of other countries. During
the apartheid era, Nigerian
students joined the band of
protesters in front of embassies of
countries perceived to be
supporting the apartheid regime in
South Africa. There were even
volunteers among the ranks of
Nigerian students who were ready
to go to the apartheid enclave to
fight for their fellow African
students.
Those were the golden era of
student unionism in Nigeria. An era
when write ups and articles by
Nigerian students were a
compelling read: An era when
oratory became the norm on
campuses: An era when students
even taught politicians how to
practice democracy. That was
when student union election was
akin to presidential elections in the
United States with robust
campaigns and oration from the
intellectually deep.
The success story of Student
Unionism is not limited to Nigeria.
Outside the country, Student
Unionism has also being a veritable
tool in the fight against oppression
and corruption in the Philippines,
China, Arab and the Middle East.
Indeed, the gale of reforms that
swept China was brought about
after students seized the
Tiananmen Square and demanded
for political changes some few
years ago. Though it was at a very
high cost, the students were able
to force the hands of the political
authority. Today, China is a more
open society with a blossoming
economy. Russia is also one of the
countries that have witnessed
positive changes through the
intervention of student’s activities.
In every administration students
are the conscience of the nation.
They are the ones who call
attention to social malady, bad
governance and other ills in the
society. They are usually radical
and resolute about issues
concerning the welfare of people.
There was a time when Nigerian
students proudly held successive
governments accountable through
incisive write-ups in newspapers,
open debates and when necessary
street protests, that were carried
out in very civilized manner.
Nigerian students have also had to
garner supports and collaboration
from the regional and international
community over human rights
abuses and political recklessness
of some leaders. Unfortunately, the
last few years have witnessed a
descent into the abyss. I can
confidently say that Nigerian
students have not lived up to
expectations of the nation, let alone
become active participants in the
business of nation building.
I must however say that we live in
a difficult milieu: an era where all
the ideals that give meaning to life
are being gradually eroded.
Unfortunately, the Nigerian
students have not escaped the
societal rot. In a way, that may be
partly responsible for the
unenviable state of Student
Unionism. Things that were done
with fear and trepidation in those
days because the society
recognizes them as inherently evil
and anti-social are now being
flaunted in our faces by our
students. The incidents of cultism,
prostitution, armed robbery, drug
addiction and other heinous crimes
now seem to be the hallmark of
students and unionism on our
campuses.it is now common to
hear that some students are armed
robbers, cultists and prostitutes.
It is very sad indeed because under
such circumstances when fear and
terror reign, students cannot
meaningfully contribute to national
development. Some students in the
name of peaceful protests beat up
their lecturers, Rectors and Vice
Chancellors, even destroy public
properties that were bought with
tax payers’ money.
Great Nigerian Students! There can
still be a paradigm shift. We can
begin to go back to the era of
responsible Students’ Unionism
and contribute our quota to
national development. Nigerian
students, especially those of you in
the higher institutions can effect a
break in the present era of
ineptitude and moral decay by
electing to stay on the path of truth,
righteousness and probity.
Remember, you cannot give what
you don’t have: Nigerian students
have to purge themselves of
prevailing level of indiscipline
before they can stand up to be
counted alongside the makers and
builders of contemporary Nigerian
Nation.
As the conscience of the nation,
students must be actively involved
in developments in their
environments. Students can form
pressure groups to monitor the
programs of their elected
representatives. This local
pressure groups can also influence
the society through the carrying out
of socially beneficial programs
such as debates, environmental
sanitations and education on the
harmful effects of drug use,
prostitution etc. You must use
debates and intellectual discourse
to make your feelings known to the
government. You should never
allow unscrupulous politicians use
you as cannon fodders in their
political battles. Students should
be the barometers to measure the
performance of every government.
You can only do this if your Unions
become credible enough for
everybody to believe the verdicts
they give. But when students hit
the streets on the prompting of
power mongers and begin to wreak
havoc on the society, then they
would have degenerated to the
level of common thugs who are
ready to do the biddings of their
pay masters for a mess of pottage.
Please note that national
development starts from self-
development. Your first
responsibility is to develop yourself
in diverse areas of law, economics,
politics, sports, ICT, religions and
so on. In you lies the future that
you desire. Again, the proclivity for
short cuts to success must be
jettisoned. Students must study
hard and desist from all forms of
examination malpractices. This is
to ensure that we preserve the
sanctity of our examination
process and of course, certificates
issued by our institutions.
Great Nigerian students! You
remain the most vibrant part of our
population. You are not called
today and tomorrow leaders for
nothing. But, we can only have a
foretaste of that glorious tomorrow
through the way you conduct
yourselves today.
The struggle to have the ideal
society is an unending one and it is
our collective responsibility.
Indeed, we are all students is
different categories. Every great
leader forever remains a student…
from classroom to the drawing
board of life and back to the
classroom again. Henry L. Doherty
said ‘Be a student as long as you
still have something to learn, and
that will mean leaning for the rest
of your life.’
Today, our challenge has moved
away for colonialism and military
rule. We are now in a civilian
regime. The key test to the political
future of Nigeria still lies in an
enduring civilian government that
will give rise to a democracy: A
democracy based on
constitutionalism and the rule of
law. You must be determined more
than ever, to lay a solid foundation
for an enduring democracy that
would be the pride of future
generations of Nigerians. The
present civilian government is not
there yet. It is on this note that I
ask you to support the progressive
vision to
transform our dear nation in line
with democratic principles into a
land of opportunities, equity, good
governance, progress and
prosperity for all.
Great Nigeria Students! You are the
greatest and most strategic asset
of Nigeria. Only you can help fight
the scourge of corruption and bad
governance.u
Aluta Continua…Victoria Ascertia!
VOTE RIGHT.
VOTE FOR CREDIBILITY.
VOTE FOR ACCOUNTABILITY.
VOTE, COMR YAAMABANA LEGBOSI FOR NANS

COMR VOPNU ADOMALE
cordinator, niger delta students vanguard
http://saharareporters.com/2016/04/14/‘occupy-nigeria’-group-plans-protests-port-harcourt

Too Long