Students attack NANS president for backing Buhari on ‘illegal IGP Adamu’s tenure extension’

The Osun State chapter of the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) has berated the 45-year-old National President of the association, Sunday Asefon, for backing the decision of President Muhammadu Buhari to extend the tenure of Mohammed Adamu as Inspector-General of Police for three months.

Asefon had on Monday, during a news conference in Abuja, faulted the leadership of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) for instituting legal action against the Presidency, claiming that the tension precipitated by the pervasive insecurity in the country requires that the President exercise discretion in the appointment of a new IGP.

He insisted that the intention of the President, which he said was to avoid a hasty appointment that would aggravate the already tensed situation, should be applauded rather than condemned.

Asefon also dismissed a news report that the IGP purportedly paid N2 billion as a bribe to some persons in the Presidency to extend his tenure in office.

Reacting in a statement by its Chairman, Agbogunleri Seun Michael, and Secretary, Ogunsakin Oluwafemi Sunday, Osun NANS JCC said it was shameful that Asefon who ought to free members of his association from intellectual enslavement was defending fraud.

It asked the NANS President to channel his activism to where it is needed.

The statement read, “The attention of the leadership of NANS JCC OSUN AXIS has just be drawn to a press statement credited to NANS National Secretariat under the leadership of Comrade Asefon Sunday throwing his weight behind the President, Muhammadu Buhari, on the extension of the IGP, Adamu Muhammed.

“National Association of Nigeria Students, Osun Axis, dissociates itself from the shameful and irresponsible statement credited to our national secretariat.

“We are using this medium to dissociate this axis from this reckless statement and it does not represent the interest of our axis and by extension thousands of students who are victims of brutality and unprofessional attitudes of the Nigeria Police Force under the command of the arrogant Mohammed Adamu.

“We want to remind the NANS-NQTRS that great Nigerian students are victims of harassment, extortion, intimidation, and dehumanisation from the supposed security agency. It is shameful that an association that is supposed to free its members from intellectual enslavement is defending fraud.

“With police brutality running rampant in campuses in Nigeria, and protests breaking out across the country, I don’t expect a students association to be supporting tenure elongation of Mr Muhammed Adamu.

“The level of inhumanity is just unbearable. Many students have lost their precious lives during confrontations with the Nigeria Police Force on the barricades. National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) should channel their activism to where it is needed. Nigerian petrol price sells at N175 per litre but NANS, a pressure group, refused to talk.

“Nigeria’s educational system is in assorted crises of infrastructural decay, neglect, waste of resources and sordid conditions of service. Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) suddenly increased the electricity tariff from 30.23 naira for one kWh (kilowatt unit of energy per hour) to as much as 62.33 naira per kWh. Where is our organisation?

“Adamu was due to retire from the police on February 1 having spent a maximum of 35 years in service. National Association of Nigerian Students should come out to play her expected role to salvage this country from sinking.”

President Buhari had on February 4 extended the tenure of Adamu in contrary to the provisions of the Police Act 2020, which in Section 7 (6) fixes a single term of four years without an option of extension of tenure for the holder of the office of the Inspector-General of Police.

“A person appointed to the office of the Inspector-General of Police shall hold office for four years,” it read.

Section 18 (8) of the Act signed by the President on September 15, 2020, also read, “Every police officer shall, on recruitment or appointment, serve in the police force for 35 years or until he attains the age of 60 years, whichever is earlier.”

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