Nigeria, June 6, 2016 – The Muslim Students Society of Nigeria(MSSN) today called on President Muhammadu Buhari to justify the mandate freely given to him by Nigerians in 2015, urging him to embark on policies that will quickly enhance the quality of lives of the citizens.
Briefing reporters on the Grand finale of Biennial Qur’an Memorasition Competition, the President of MSSN , Lagos State Area Unit, Mallam Saheed Ashafa said that the current developments in the country call for concern, saying that Nigerians are more interested in seeing a governance system that positively transforms their society within the shortest time interval.
“Although President Muhammad Buhari’s integrity and honesty are not doubtful, many factors are obviously working against him. Part of which is the defective structure he met on ground. On his part, the President should consider restructuring his team. Fighting corruption is commendable but will be more appreciated if it is complemented with infrastructural development. Nigerians are more interested in seeing a governance system that positively transforms their society within the shortest time interval. The ‘Change’ slogan should be coded in values of direction.
“Regardless of the structure and challenges faced by the country and the inherited liabilities in all forms, we appeal to President Muhammad Buhari not to leave Nigeria divided than he met it; not to let things get worsen under his administration. He must leave outstanding legacies and intervene in critical areas such as education and difficulty experienced in paying salaries by some state governors”
The group which also faulted the alleged plan by some state governors to stop the payment of West African Senior School Certificate Examination, WASCE and National Examination Council, NECO, said the annual payment of the students’ examination fees is a right and not a privilege.
Lamenting that after 15 years of mismanagement of the country’s resources, the new government still finds it challenging to stabilise all sectors in the country,Ashafa said the nation’s development effort since independence has not been able, till date, to support a decent life and a promising future for the citizens.
He described the planned stoppage of WAEC and NECO fee payment by state governments, as unacceptable, arguing that payment of the exams fee for the students is a good legacy that must not be eroded for any reason.
” The new administration has a serious task to face. It must justify the mandates of Nigerians by making it count in the quality of their lives and that of the generation unborn! No doubt, the President Muhammad Buhari’s administration has succeeded in technical areas where the previous administrations failed.
” We condemn in totality the plan of some governors to stop paying WAEC and NECO fee for students. Paying for the students is a good legacy that must not be eroded for any reason. It is the students’ right and not a privilege,”. Ashafa added.
The group also chided the Education Minister,Adamu Adamu, over report on likely ban of Post-Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (Post-UTME), saying “The new policy should not have come at this point when Joint Admission and Matriculation Board (JAMB) itself lacks standard and has not resolved many of the technical challenges facing it. Nigeria’s education sector as a whole is still battling a lot of challenges that needs urgent attention. The decay in education system is evident in the poor results of students and even quality of work done by artisans. Certainly, the policy (stopping Post-UTME), may be a good one but introduced at a wrong time.”
Harping on the Qur’an competition, the MSSN president said that the competition would be held in honour of the pioneer President of MSSN in Nigeria and a former Secretary General of the Nigeria Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs, Late Alhaji Lateef Adegbite, on June 12, 2016 at the Gymnasium Hall, National Institute for Sports, National Stadium, Surulere, Lagos.
Noting that this year’s theme is entitled “The Divine Compendium for Governance”, Ashafa said that MSSN Lagos Unit which has pioneered the organisation of the competition since 1999, has also provided the platform upon which a sizeable number of youths in the southwest have realized their potentials and are now memorizers of the Qur’an.
