Public university students from the 19 Northern states of Nigeria under the aegis of the Coalition of Northern Groups’ Students, staged a protest in Jalingo, Taraba State, over the ongoing industrial action embarked upon by members of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU).
The disgruntled students who expressed their frustration with the continued closure of schools for over four months, blocked the ever-busy Jalingo Expressway, a situation that caused gridlock for motorists. They stated that the protest became necessary because they were tired of staying at home.
According to the National Secretary-General of the Coalition, Emuseh Gimba who spoke to journalists during the protest, the Nigerian government has failed to meet the demands of the striking lecturers and life has become miserable for students coupled with the high spate of kidnapping and banditry activities in the region.
Gimba further accused the government of turning a deaf ear to the pleas of the union despite the fact that in their time, they all enjoyed free education a privilege they have denied the present generation.
