Wife of Chief Gani Fawehinmi, the late human right activist, Ganiat, has asked the Minister of Finance, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, to resign if she is tired of handling her responsibilities, by being responsive to necessities.
Fawehinmi, who said this during her address at the annual convention of the Coalition Against Corrupt Leaders, in Lagos on Wednesday, berated the minister for saying the Federal Government had no resources to meet the demands of the Academic Staff Union of Universities.
The government had earlier said it could not meet the N92bn ASUU had demanded, based on its 2009 agreement with the FG.
Fawehinmi, who said she was fully in support of the ASUU strike, described the reaction of the government, concerning the strike, as selfish and wicked.
She said, “I must send a clear warning to Okonjo-Iweala who had said the FG had no resources to accommodate the demands of ASUU. If she is tired of the job she can as well resign and go to her first country of choice, the United States of America.
“It appears highly despicable that having been a party to the 2009 agreement, the government has reneged on the said agreement. It shows complete wickedness, selfishness and heartlessness.
“The situation shows the incompetence of Minister of Education, Ruqqayat Rufai, Miniter of State for Education, Mr. Nyesom Wike and the Minister for Labour and Productivity, Chief Emeka Wogu, who were the three ministers who should have ensured that the terms of agreements with ASUU were honored.”
Fawehinmi said youth unemployment had led to various vices in the country.
She condemned Minister of Labour, Emeka Wogu, for failing to create jobs for up to a quarter of Nigerian population.
She said, “Wogu should be blamed for unemployment of the youth in the country. In a population where labour force accounts for more than 60 million people, he has not encouraged job creation for for the people, since he was sworn in.
She said the FG was supposed to provide jobs for at least five million persons every year.
Meanwhile, a civil rights organization, Anti-Corruption Network, has asked the government to release the money being demanded by ASUU or face nationwide unrest.
The organization specifically gave the government till Monday next week to settle with ASUU, failing which it said it would mobilize students and youths across the country to protest against the non-insensitivity of the federal and state governments to the striking lecturers.
