(NEWS RELEASE)
Four hundred and nine education stakeholders have so far, as at 3rd November, 2022, signed the online petition for political parties and presidential candidates in the 2023 general elections in Nigeria to provide their detailed education reform manifestos.
The stakeholders are also petitioning for serious candidates to sign their manifestos to provide assurance that the manifestos are serious social contracts and not just election period political gimmicks for winning votes.
This letter is to sensitize stakeholders on how and why education is being shunned and disregarded by Parties and on the need to join in signing the petition. The link to the petition is https://chng.it/vLw2hxXpfX
LETTER TO EDUCATION STAKEHOLDERS … (l)
The trend of 2023 general election campaigns, which commenced on 28th September, 2022, shows that Political Parties and their Candidates are shunning education.
They are also showing contempt and disregard for education stakeholders.
JESAC’s painstaking analysis of Manifestos of political parties confirm relative neglect for education compared to the detailed attention being accorded to other sectors like health, agriculture, security and economy.
Out of a total of 573 pages of manifestos issued by 16 participating Parties published in INEC website, only a total of 38 pages (6.6%) are dedicated to education.
The Manifestos of Allied People Movement and Zenith Labour Party are not part of JESAC analysis because the Manifestos are not on INEC website.
The conclusion of neglect of education sector and shunning of education stakeholders is not based only on relative pagination in manifestos.
The analysis also considered the extent to which the manifestos communicated knowledge of the deep-rooted structural and systemic challenges in education and the proposed course of action by Parties for resolving the challenges.
Analysis of the Manifestos showed shallow understanding of the depth of the rot in education.
The strategies outlined in the manifestos fall short of clear, bold, courageous, visionary and out-of-the-box actions plans needed to successfully address the challenges.
Since launching the JESAC Project at the Centre for Women Development, Abuja on 28th October, 2010, as platform for Candidates to present and defend their education plans to education stakeholders at each general election circle, JESAC has developed, streamlined and published a Charter of 100 Irreducible Minimum Education Reforms (ISBN978-2727-06-7). The Charter outlines 100 specific items of education reforms that should be addressed for successful transformation of education. The Charter also provides a framework for assessment of possible impact of education manifestos of candidates. JESAC’s assessment of Party Manifestos reveal no specific proposals for addressing majority of 100 problem-areas highlighted in the Charter of Reforms.
JESAC started with the assessment of education manifestos of political parties for two major reasons. The first reason is that it is reasonably expected that ideologies and manifestos of Parties provide direction, boundaries and context for manifestos of Candidates for Presidential, Gubernatorial, Senatorial, House of Representatives, State Houses of Assembly and other elections. Secondly, all political leaders at executive, legislative, national, state and local government levels play important roles in implementation of reforms in line with the concurrent position of education in the constitution. Party manifestos are source codes of policies and actions of political leaders.
The neglect of education is also reflecting in television talk shows and campaign events where some Presidential Candidates hide behind sweeping generalizations and deflections in answering questions relating to their education roadmaps.
One of the revealing indications of neglect of the education sector and disregard of education stakeholders in the politics of 2023 elections is the response of Parties to the 8-month ASUU strike. All Parties submitted their Manifestos before 28th September, 2023, when the strike was still on. (The strike was called off on 14th October). As I write this letter, students, lecturers, parents, institutions, traders, landlords, transporters, hoteliers, banks, families and the economy are still suffering from the losses and hardships inflicted by the strike. In some institutions, the 2019/2020 batches of admissions are yet to matriculate.
Given the devastating impact of the Strike on lives of students and citizens, the least that was expected from concerned and emotionally intelligent political parties campaigning for power is to mention in their manifestos the specific conflict resolution and collective bargaining proposals for ending incessant strike actions, shutting down of institutions and disruption of academic activities. But what did the Manifestos say about strikes? Nothing! Of all the Parties, only the manifesto of Action Alliance mentioned strike in one sentence: “The AA would create an atmosphere for dialogue with staff of all tertiary institutions to avoid the perennial problem of endless strike.”
There are three major reasons why Education is suffering neglect. Stakeholders have not been able to deploy the political asset of their huge population during elections. The population of education stakeholders is in excess of 30 million that include Students, Teachers, Lecturers, Principals, Parents, Non-Academic Staff, Old boys and Girls Association, Alumni Associations, Professional Associations that span the entire garment of education sector, from primary to tertiary.
Education stakeholders have not been able to mobilize, inspire and organize their members to deploy their structures, networks, organizational skills and brain power to bond, speak and work together during campaigns to identify and vote for education-friendly candidates.
Education stakeholders including Unions and Associations have also not been able to organize their members to bond together to move away from being passive political watchers and grumblers to being pro-active political playmakers and game changers during elections.
But it is morning yet on creation day! No serious and wise political party or candidate can afford to shun, neglect or disregard education in the 2023 elections. Only if each and every stakeholder start now to take action in the battle of education. The key is in self-mobilization. Do not wait to be mobilized. Take action now as a stakeholder in education. From your perspective, location and post. Begin by joining to sign the petition.
The next letter will focus on some of the proposed education initiatives of the parties. Meanwhile please download and study the manifestoes of parties from INEC website so as to actively contibute to discussion on issues raised in subsequent letters.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Onyechere, MFR, is founding chairman, Exam Ethics Marshals International and Convener, Joint Education Stakeholders Action Coalition (JESAC)
