The recent power tussles (if I may call that) between Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) and the Federal Government of Nigeria (FGN) has yet shown another instance of the negative feelings people have towards their teachers. If ASUU was expecting sympathy from Nigerians, it would have been heartbroken because almost every single Nigerian believes they don’t deserve whatever it was they were striving for. Nigerians have already passed judgement, without hearing, and have declared ASUU guilty of bullying FGN.

But, if you truly look at this, you will come to agree with me that Nigerians are subjective in their judgement. Trust me, if it were the Super Eagles that said they won’t be captured by the IPPIS, Nigerians would have backed them up and fought FGN with them. In fact, Nigerians would have taken over the case and done the fighting for them. But here, they found themselves between their two “enemies”, so they stood with the less threatening one this time.

So I ask, why do people dislike their teachers? Why is it that teachers are never treated with the honour they deserved? Why do Nigerians decide that teachers should remain hungry and wait for their rewards in heaven? Why is it that when teachers start striking people will ask them to consider the welfare of their students without joining them to make their voices heard?

I know that the first thing everybody will say about lecturers is that they are mean, selfish, greedy and inconsiderate. I know some people will be fast to remind me that lecturers collect bribe, or rather sorting, and that they compel their students to have sex with them. But, do all lecturers engage in these acts? Besides, if ASUU is inconsiderate of the economic situation of the country, as people kept reminding them, how come those in the House, that are living a lavishing lifestyle, allocating excessive funds to themselves and using public funds and properties for their personal gains, are not considerate? Or is it because the demand came from ASUU?

Having been a teacher for more than a decade, and having tried several methods to keep the students relaxed, I’ve found out that no matter what you do as a teacher, you are never loved by your students, whether incumbent or past. The past ones may acknowledge what you’ve done for them, but deep down them remains that feeling that bothers around dislike and anger. That is why someone will say something like, “That man helped me to understand Pythagoras theorem, but, men, that man no be am.” If you ask him what that man did that earned him the “no be am” comment, you may be surprised to find out that no coherent answer will come forth.

What I have come to realise is that teachers push their students out of their comfort zones. That is the only crime they committed. I’ll try my best to explain how they do this.

1. Disruptive Knowledge: When teachers teach, they pass on sets of new knowledge to their students. Most times, this could be quite challenging to the students, who might need to unlearn what has been instilled in them for a long time in order to pick up what the teacher is saying. Some may create a dissonance and ignore the new knowledge. This last set of people always do the possible best to discredit their teachers. In fact they are the ones that usually see teachers from the negative light.

2. Tests and Exams: Another crime teachers commit is testing their students. A lot of people don’t like any form of tests or exams; they want an exam-free education system. But here they are, scheduled to write challenging tests given by their teachers, who denied them time to play football and hang out with friends. And in the exam hall, she will bring out questions that make them think for 10 minutes before they can understand what was expected of them. By the end of the day, the students write their exams with annoyance, which they transfer to their teachers and never to themselves.

3. Evaluation: It is common for a teacher to “give” students D, E, and F, and for the students to “get” A and B. This is the common believe in our country. When a student knows he didn’t do well in the exam, he will still claim that the teacher “gave” him F. This is just a way of insinuating that the teacher wrongly evaluated him. But should the teacher “wrongly” give him A, when he, the student, knows he didn’t merit it, he will not say the “teacher gave” him but that “I got” A. This is just to say that students blame their teachers for their (the students’) failures, but never give them credit for their success. This follows them even after leaving school. That’s why people don’t speak out for the welfare of teachers, because they never truly saw them as having done anything for them.

4. Punishment: People hardly forget those that punished them even when the pain has gone and the memory is blurred. A single punishment from a teacher is enough to earn him a life enemy. He, the teacher, may forget the punishment but the person that received it will bear it to heart for long. That the punishment was meted out to help or to reform the student isn’t the concern of the student; all he cared about at that moment is that he was humiliated and penalised for something he saw as nothing. The worst thing here is that this affected student will transfer his dislike for the teacher to others teachers, even to the ones that were his ‘friends’.

It’s high time Nigeria started according teachers respects due to them. Teachers are the lowest salary earners in this country and there is no sign that this situation will change anytime soon. Even professor in the university earns what an entry-level BSc holder in some MDAs receives (and most of them are not under IPPIS) but nobody notices that. So if ASUU is the only strong body that will make the voice of the academics heard in this country, then I’ll stand with them. FGN shouldn’t turn academics into puppets, IPPIS or not.

Let me also ask one more thing, are those in the National Houses paid under IPPIS? Or are Nigerians misfiring their ‘anger’ to the wrong party?

English Football Association’s defiance in the face of coronavirus has come with a price, and Arsenal appears to be the first team to pay in England. Arsenal’s coach Mikel Arteta has tested positive to COVID-19, and it may be more than just him.

Arsenal has issued a statement highlighting the steps the North London club is taking to contain the situation. Read below.

“Arsenal personnel who had recent close contact with Mikel will now self-isolate in line with Government health guidelines. We expect this to be a significant number of people from Colney, including the full first-team squad and coaching staff, as well as a smaller number of people from our Hale End Academy which we have also temporarily closed as a precaution.

“We expect those who did not have close contact with Mikel to return to work in the coming days. In the meantime our Colney and Hale End training centres will undergo a deep clean and our other club sites are operating as normal.”

Managing director Vinai Venkatesham said: “The health of our people and the wider public is our priority and that is where our focus is. Our thoughts are with Mikel who is disappointed but in good spirits. We are in active dialogue with all the relevant people to manage this situation appropriately and we look forward to getting back to training and playing as soon as medical advice allows.”

Head of football Raul Sanllehi added: “Mikel and the full first-team squad, players and staff, will be fully supported, and we look forward to getting back to training and playing as soon as medical advice allows. Obviously Mikel’s full recovery is the priority now for us all.”

“We will work with Public Health England on the next steps in regard to our facilities and staff, and with the Premier League, Football Association and relevant clubs around our forthcoming matches in the Premier League and Emirates FA Cup.

“It is clear we will not be able to play some fixtures on their currently scheduled dates. We will update supporters who have tickets for forthcoming games with more information as soon as possible.

“We are now working to trace any other people who have had recent close contact with Mikel. We will let them know what has happened and they should follow the NHS guidance which is likely to recommend self-isolation.”

Mikel Arteta appears to be in a positive spirit hoping to recover soon and get back to work.

Mikel said: “This is really disappointing but I took the test after feeling poorly. I will be at work as soon as I’m allowed.”

The news was coming about an hour after the Premier League had announced that matches will go ahead this weekend with an open stadium and with fans in attendance.

While other league bodies in Europe have been postponing matches and suspending the league, Premiership has remained adamant.

In the UK, up to 10, 000 people are said to be coronavirus positive, yet the FA and the government think it is right for sporting events such as football to continue with fans in attendance. The government has advised everyone showing flu-like symptoms to isolate himself. The advice urged that they should stay at least two meters away from anyone else, sleep alone and ask for help to get things they need.

“Stay away from vulnerable individuals such as the elderly and those with underlying health conditions as much as possible,” the advice said.

The UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson admitted that the worst is yet to come and the possibility of banning sports fans in the future but said that “there is very little epidemiological or medical reason, at the moment, to ban such events.”

With the number of infected persons skyrocketing in Europe, the World Health Organization WHO has advised against large gathering, a measure Italy, Spain and many other European countries have adopted as a precautionary measure.

Concerned UK citizens have been vocal about the need for the government and the FA to suspend football activities till further notice.

“How can we possibly continue with football in Britain when a top Premier League manager has now tested positive for coronavirus & other players are in quarantine”? Asked Piers Morgan. “This is madness. Our Prime Minister is dodging difficult decisions that other countries are taking and it’s shameful.”

Meanwhile, another Juventus player, Paulo Dybala has been confirmed positive, making it two players from the Italian side to be infected this week.

The bill seeking to amend sections 65 (2) (a), 131 (d) and section 106 (c) and section 177 (d) on minimum education qualification for those seeking political offices in Nigeria, has on Thursday, scaled second reading in the Senate.

The amendment bill which prescribes Higher National Diploma or its equivalent as the educational qualification requirement for anyone contesting for the office of the president or governor was sponsored by Senator Isfifanus Gyang, (PDP) Plateau State.

The bill also stipulated National Diploma for or its equivalent for those contesting for a seat in the state and federal legislature.

According to Punch, each of the sections of the constitution on education qualification for the major public offices in Nigeria was reviewed. The section 65 (2) (a) which is about the education qualification of federal lawmakers reads thus: “A person shall be qualified for election under subsection (1) of this section if he has been educated up to at least School Certificate level or its equivalent.”

The bill seeking to amend it reads: “If he has been educated to at least a National Diploma level or its equivalent.”

For the office of the governor, the bill is seeking to amend the current qualification requirement of School Certificate level or its equivalent. Section 131 (d) now reads as rephrased: “He has been educated up to at least HND level or its equivalent.” The current phrase reads: “He must have been educated up to at least School Certificate level or its equivalent.”

For the education qualification requirement for those seeking to join the National Assembly or State Assembly, section 106 (6) of the constitution was reviewed. The current law states that anyone who wishes to become a member of the House of Assembly must have a School Certificate level or its equivalent.

But the bill has altered the section to prescribe National Diploma as a requirement. The rephrase now reads: “If he has been educated up to National Diploma or its equivalent.”

The same education qualification applies to the office of the governor. Section 177 (d) states that whoever is running for the office of the governor must possess at least School Certificate level or its equivalent. The bill is seeking to amend it to: “If he has been educated up to at least Higher National Diploma Level or its equivalent.”

Upon scaling this reading, the bill has been passed to the Committee of Constitution Review by the Senate President Ahmad Lawan.

In 2019, the Supreme Court of Nigeria ruled that the President does not need a certificate to hold office.

The Peoples Democratic Party presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar has taken the incumbent, Muhammadu Buhari to court for lacking the qualification to contest for the office of the president due to his lack of certificate. The ruling of the Apex court therefore exposed what critics described as “vacuum in the constitution” and “mockery of public offices in Nigeria.”

Buhari had contested the presidential election using a senior school certificate, which compared to other countries was said to be far below par. However, the Supreme Court reached its verdict based on what Nigeria’s constitution says.

“The law is well settled and the case-law is crystalized on the point that the 2nd respondent (Buhari) cannot go beyond provisions of sections 131 and 131 (8) of the 1999 constitution.

The case-law is replete with decisions of this court on the subject. We cannot amend the constitution. We need to make it clear at this point that the constitution and laws of the land do not expect any certificate to be tendered or attached,” Buhari’s legal counsel Wole Olanipekun said during the judgment.

The Supreme Court has ruled that aspirants to the position of president need only to have primary or secondary schools education and should have been in the public service for 10 years and attended training, has the ability to read and write in English language. It was based on this interpretation that the certificate saga was laid to rest.

But then, it became a cause for concern to Nigerians, especially opposition political parties. The Coalition of United Political Parties (CUPP) said the Supreme Court judgment returned Nigeria and the electoral process to the dark ages.

“Our nation’s democracy and the electoral process have been set back to the dark ages… indeed; the court has held that seeking the highest office in the land requires the least possible qualification in the land. How absurd”?

The disappointment and heavy backlash that stemmed from the Apex court’s ruling propelled the lawmakers to seek the amendment of the sections of the constitution that enabled political office aspirants to contest with the least educational qualification.

However, Nigerians are worried that President Buhari will likely decline to assent to the bill.