IT IS HIGHTIME WE TOOK ACTIONS, AND NOT ONLY RELEASE STATEMENTS – COM. TAIWO BAMIGBADE.
The Senate President, National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS), COM TAIWO BAMIGBADE popularly known as Egalitarian, speaks with THE INFORMANT247 correspondent on the issues to be discussed on the floor of the chamber at senate sitting holding on the 8th of September, 2017 at Ilorin. He revealed the reasons behind it and how they wish to implement the final resolutions of the sitting.
Can we meet you sir?
I am comrade Taiwo Bamigbade, the senate President of the National Association of Nigerian Students. I am a student of the Federal University of Technology Akure, a postgraduate student of the department of Agriculture resources to be precise. I also did my first degree in same University.
Why are you here today?
Well, we are here today just to receive delegates whom have began to troop in since last night and as you can see, delegates are all over here, we. Now have delegates from Cross Rivers, Oyo, Ekiti, Ondo and so on. As we all know, students leaders won’t just gather for no reasons, we are all here because of our future, and as an adage would say, “Our future lies in our hands” and that’s why we deem it fit to have a senate session here in North central, Kwara State to deliberate on basic issues that is affecting the welfarism of Nigerian students ranging from ASSU strike, LAUTECH crises, Ekiti state crises, strike by the Academic staff of Ondo state Polytechnics and so on, and that’s why we are here, once again i want to say you are welcome sir.
With the serene environment, it shows how peaceful this sitting would be, and we can see delegates all over, can you give us the approximate number of delegates on ground already?
As you all know, it’s a usual tradition to do Accreditations of delegates as they arrives, Normally, the total number of delegates that are expected here today, the total number of students that subscribe to NANS, are over 256. But as at the last count, they are up to 177 delegates already on the accreditation list, aside those that are just arriving.
A press statement was released by by the Haruna Kadiri’s faction instructing student Union presidents not to attend this sitting, what’s your take on it sir?
You know there is freedom of speech in Nigeria today, anybody can write anything. Imagine someone sitting in his comfort zone and asking people not to attend this sitting, they firstly said security operatives will arrest us, but we went for security meeting twice yesterday with some of our leaders and stakeholders, the likes of comrade Mexico and co., to make our intentions know to them. Are we arrested, No! now tell me, had it been we impersonated anybody, won’t the security operatives have apprehended us? They even came here to visit our delegates, anybody can write anything, that’s non of our business, students know their leaders and we also know our students so we don’t have to start replying to what anybody writes. If anybody claims to be the PRO, then he is, in his own pocket. We only have one PRO, and that’s Com. Odebunmi, and he is here today with us.
What are the issues to be discussed tomorrow?
There are many issues to be discussed at the senate chamber tomorrow, we used to have ‘State of the nation’ and ‘state of the educational sector’ (campus).The state of campus is our main concern, though we are all Nigerians and the country issue should be our major priority but we have many issues bordering the educational sector today that needs urgent attention, which includes but not limited to ASSU strike. We are of the opinion that continues protest have not in anyway solve our problems, now, we want to have a proactive way forward. I spoke with the president of ASSU,and some zonal chairmen. we had an extensive discussion on how we can curb the problems facing Nigeria students today. Though ASSU strike tops the list, but we also have issues like the LAUTECH strikes, Ekiti state university Strike, OSU tech, to mention but a few, and that’s why we felt coming together and addressing this issues is the best.
And as for the state of the nation, as we all know, the nation is officially out of recession, so how can we all feel the impact? How can every Nigeria household feels it.
How do you wish to implement the outcome of the senate sitting?
Usually, we used to write, but now we are no more doing the talking, we are taking actions. So whatever we come up with here tomorrow, we are following it up to the latter, from the state level to the federal government level.
