Govts' failure to invest in research fuelling insecurity - ASUU | EduCeleb
EduCeleb
9th February 2020
The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) on Sunday blamed the federal and state governments for the continuous rise in insurgency and insecurity in the country.
It connected this to the lack of adequate funding for research and development.
ASUU maintained that many states were reverting to organising their internal security networks without treating the causes of insecurity.
The union said it had been warning governments to cater for the needs of the vulnerable in the society which appeared to have fallen to deaf ears.
ASUU Chairman at the University of Ibadan, Deji Omole said in Ibadan that instead of budgeting for peoples welfare, Nigerian governments now spend billions of naira to buy security equipment from the countries that have invested heavily in the research and training.
According to him, due to years of neglect and unbridled corruption in high places, many Nigerians have come to lose interest in standards of ethical living since those leading them are mortgagers of future.
The Professor of Forest Engineering stated that the union had maintained that a time will come when the children of the poor that were neglected will have nothing to eat but the rich in the society, stating that the observation was happening now.
He noted that poor education funding had made Nigerian students live in zoo-like hostels with sad memories for the society.
Omole who noted that Nigerian leaders benefit more with Nigeria ranking as the world poverty capital and deepening corruption maintained that unless the basics are treated, budgeting for weapons will increase ‘lootocracy’.
“Every year they budget for themselves. The president and his cabinet get lion share and the some members of the National assembly with no brilliant contributions to economy become billionaires overnight as a result of this insecurity.  Instead of attending to poverty, education and unemployment, the security forces advice on buying more weapons.
“They keep on churning out bad policies that impoverishes more families and with no job, and bad economy, crime and criminality is reigning supreme.
“Government must give electricity, tackle unemployment and attack poverty and fund education to keep children in focus on positive development attitudes”, he said.