6th September, 2018
A former president of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), has urged Nigerians to vote for credible leaders in the 2019 general elections.
Dr Dipo Fasina, President of the union between 2000 and 2004 and convener Centre for Popular Education (CEPED), an NGO, made the call on Wednesday during the Abuja Zonal Symposium for Population Education at the University of Abuja. It was organised by the Abuja University chapter of ASUU.
The theme of the symposium was: “Neo-liberalism, Democracy and Development in Nigeria”.
Fasina said that it was old-fashion for the electorate to focus on choosing leaders from any political party, without looking at the credibility of the candidates.
“Nigerians are beginning to understand that politicians defecting from one party to another are chameleons and are not working for the interest of the masses.
“We are not taking the right political direction that should be and politics is dictated by only the rich in the society.
“The people have not understood the basis of our economic, political power and the union came to the conclusion to educate the people,” he said.
He, however, called on Nigerians to reorganise themselves and form a people’s political organisation that would foster the development of the country.
Mr Aremu Abiodun, Coordinator, Joint Action Committee, Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC) advised non-partisan leaders to play their part to promote the emergence of credible leaders.
Abiodun described neoliberalism in the present society as a policy that was not in the interest of the masses but for the elites in the society.
“What is taught as neoliberalism is a packaged policy that is destructive to the modern society and human existence.
“We have a political system that has sold us to slavery and people must see beyond this technical time and how it works,” he said.
Abiodun called for peaceful co-existence of citizens of different backgrounds, adding that it was only in an atmosphere of peace that the goals of the nation would be realised.
He said that religion has a big role to play in governance, urging all Nigerians not to allow religion to divide them in the course of nation building.