NANS Demands Osodeke’s Apology over Comment on Varsities
The National Association of Nigeria Students has called on the President of the Academic Staff Union of Universities, Prof. Emmanuel Osodeke, to apologise for calling state universities quacks.
Recall that the ASUU president recently came under fire after an interview on Arise TV on Thursday where he addressed some issues regarding the ongoing industrial action by the union.
Speaking on why some state universities pulled out of the strike, Osodeke said, “Talk about important universities not those quacks. They’re not part of our strike.”
Although he debunked the claim, the president of the apex students’ body, Sunday Ashefon, in an interview with Sunday PUNCH, said ASUU president should apologise for the statement.
He said, “That is an unguided statement. Imagine an erudite professor calling universities where his colleagues, who are also professors, work quack universities! This is sad, we condemned this in totality and we demand an apology from him.”
He stated further that state universities had no benefit from the demands of ASUU but wasting their efforts and students time joining the strike.
Meanwhile, the Kwara State University on Friday condemned Osodeke for referring to some state universities currently running their academic calendar despite the ongoing strike of the union as “quacks and irrelevant”.
It said such the statement was undeserving of an academic don, saying the union’s president should not have denigrated the institutions of learning because of their refusal to join the ongoing strike action by the union.
In a statement on Saturday by its Director of University Relations, Dr. Saeedat Aliyu, the institution explained that such a statement was uncalled for and would be considered as reckless, adding that it could also be translated to bullying of the higher institutions.
KWASU, however, asked Osodeke to retract his derogatory statements and apologised for uttering such in a public space.
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Contents
(FAQs) about the situation in which the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) demanded an apology:
What was the comment that prompted NANS to demand an apology?
NANS demanded an apology after Osodeke was reported to have described some state‑owned universities that didn’t join the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) strike as “quacks” and irrelevant in a televised interview — comments many found derogatory toward those institutions.
Who exactly called for the apology?
The demand for apology came from the leadership of the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS), the umbrella body representing university students across Nigeria. They urged Osodeke to retract the statements and apologise for what they saw as disrespectful remarks.
Why did NANS find the comments offensive?
NANS and other student groups felt the label was demeaning and insulting to state universities and their students. They argued that categorising entire institutions as “quacks” undermined the efforts of staff and students working hard to maintain academic standards.
Did anyone else join the call for an apology?
Yes — other stakeholders, including some university authorities like Kwara State University (KWASU) and Ekiti State University (EKSU), also condemned the remark and demanded retraction and apology from the ASUU president, describing it as unwarranted and unfair.
Has Osodeke apologised or responded to the demand?
As of the original reports, there was no public statement confirming that Osodeke had issued an apology. The controversy highlighted tensions between university unions and other stakeholders over how issues affecting higher education are discussed publicly.
