Atiku made the assertion, yesterday, on the sidelines of the graduation ceremony of Anglia Ruskin University (ARU) in Cambridge, United Kingdom.
The ARU Awards Board on November 12, 2021, confirmed the award of Master of Arts in International Relations to Atiku, following the successful completion of his Master’s degree programme at the university. The graduation ceremony could not hold then because of COVID-19 disruptions.
However, the former Vice President was not physically present at the ceremony, yesterday, having collected his certificate earlier. He was also not represented, in line with the policy of the institution.
The PDP presidential candidate stayed away from the event in solidarity with Nigerian students (and their parents and wards) who have been at home for months with no end in sight to the protracted strike by the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU).
Atiku said: “In all honesty, I could not mount the podium with other graduands to collect my certificate today. I had worked hard to complete my studies and was excitedly looking forward to donning the graduation robe and collecting my certificate. However, I am compelled to skip the event, in solidarity with our students who, through no fault of theirs, are being degraded at home.”
Atiku restated his position that the mind is a very terrible thing to waste.
He noted that there’s no return on investment that can surpass that on education.
He said: “Education is a game changer because it unlocks the sustainable “crude oil” in the brain, as against that in the bowels of the earth.
“Education remains a priority to me. That explains why I invested in it and was prepared against all odds to walk this journey that has earned me a higher degree today.”
He pleaded with the Federal Government and ASUU to resolve all extant issues to pave the way for the strike to be called off so that students could return to school.
He also urged all stakeholders in society to make the funding of ASUU a continuous and deliberate policy for the sake of the youth.
