The National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) on Monday grounded activities at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport in Lagos in protest over the lingering Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) strike.
NANS on Saturday threatened to shut down all international airports across the country in a protest tagged #OccupyTheAirports over the protracted closure of universities.
“We are here to inform all Nigerian students and the general public that we shall begin another round of protest next week by storming the airspace on Monday, 19 September 2022 to #OccupyTheAirports,” Ojo Olumide, Chairman, NANS National Task Force on ‘End ASUU Strike Now, had said in a statement in Akure, Ondo State.
“We want to let the world know about the pains and anguish students are going through. Nigerian students whose parents create the commonwealth cannot continue to be suffering at home alongside our lecturers, while the few who gain from our sweats and blood have their kids abroad jollying and flexing.”
NANS fulfilled its threat by storming the Murtala Muhammed International Airport in Ikeja, Lagos State in the early hours of Monday (today) amid heavy security presence to press down their demands for the government to resolve the ASUU strike which has dragged on for almost seven months.
In videos making rounds on social media, the protesting students could be seen chanting solidarity songs and dancing on the road, thereby creating gridlock on the busy road.
Meanwhile, Justice Polycarp Hamman of the National Industrial Court will today hear an application for interlocutory injunction filed by the federal government, challenging the members of ASUU to suspend their ongoing strike.
Also, the leadership of ASUU will meet with the House of Representatives on Tuesday to find a lasting solution to the ongoing strike embarked upon by the union.
