University Resumption: NANS Pledged To Set Up COVID-19 Task Force in Schools

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Following the long strike by the Academic Staff Union of Nigerian University (ASUU), The National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) has called on ASUU to as a matter of national importance to resume academic activities as directed by the Federal Government.

The student body also directed its unit chapter across the federation to set up a COVID-19 task force team to oversee and enforce coronavirus protocol in the university campuses as lay down by the Presidential Task Force (PTF) on COVID-19 to guarantee safety amongst the university communities.

The directive was issued through a statement today by the NANS president, Sunday Asefu.

Vigil360 had on 24th December reported that ASUU and the federal government had reached an agreement to call off the 9-months industrial action with some conditions.

Shortly after the suspension of the strike by the academicians, the PTF issued another directive of partial lockdown on public places until 18 January following the second wave of the coronavirus, though the PTF is still foot-dragging on the possibility of resuming on January 18 as scheduled.

The NANS statement partly reads; “Rather than postpone schools’ resumption, it has become imperative to address the alarming spread of COVID-19 and rising cases of deaths from a position of environmental strategy and human coordination since the lockdown mechanism can no longer be a mitigating option in the face of our economic reality.

“The federal government is immediately urged to rethink its approach and take only actions that can get more Nigerians into coordinated and regulated systems, like schools and offices, where hours of wearing face masks and complying with COVID Safety protocols can be guaranteed to curb the spread.

“Consequently, the National Association of Nigerian Students is undertaking to prevail on students union bodies to set up Students Task Force against COVID-19 in every school, while asking the Federal Government to rejig its basic COVID guidelines for schools resumption.”