The Christ Livingspring Apostolic Ministry (CLAM), Lagos, has launched a non-political platform, ‘Back to School Intervention Fund (BSIF)’ to assist the Federal Government in resolving the challenges in the education sector.
Senior pastor of CLAM, Wole Oladiyun, at a press conference on Friday, said time has come for Nigerians to contribute financially, to end the ongoing eight months old strike by the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU).
•Senior pastor of CLAM, Wole Oladiyun
Oladiyun noted that the time had come for well-meaning Nigerians at home and in the diaspora to show concern for the plight of the students whose future was being threatened by the constant interruptions in university education.
According to him, BTSIF is a non-political and non partisan platform to help complement the government’s efforts, while adding that it is part of the church’s mandate in supporting humanity.
He stated that neither he nor the church would supervise the proposed intervention fund, rather, it would be contracted to reputable financial consulting firms like the KPMG, PricewaterhouseCoopers, and Akintola Williams Firms, amongst others to help in actualising the project.
Oladiyun added that other trusted personalities would be drafted into the panel set up to interface with the government.
He, therefore, called on financial institutions, Oil and Gas Industry operators, manufacturing companies, religious institutions and all members of the organised private sector to ensure that the initiative sees the light of day, adding that it has become urgent for students to resume back to school as soon as possible.
His words: “We will run a very transparent process and ensure that there is accountability. That is why we are not doing it alone.
“Let me use this opportunity to humbly invite Churches, Mosques, financial institutions, oil and gas industry operators, manufacturing companies and all members of the Organised Private Sector to join us on this rescue mission.
“This is a ‘Save Our Soul’ mission, an emergency that requires timely, measured, and sustainable remedial strategies.
“We are also appealing to Nigerians in the Diaspora to join us in contributing to the fund.
“We will also be calling on members of the National Assembly, governors, and all categories of political office holders to be ready to make sacrifices in terms of contributing a part of their salaries and allowances to this fund. We are all in this together.
“We are not doing this to score any cheap political point. We just want to work with well-meaning individuals and organizations to ensure that students return back to the classroom as soon as possible.
“We just want to play our part as responsible corporate citizens that are committed to restoring the lost glory of the nation’s education sector. The blame game should stop. It’s time for action and sincere intervention by all those who truly love Nigeria.
“The funds will not be warehoused in our church, I will also not be signatory. The funds will be managed by reputable auditing firms like; Pricewaterhouse, KGPM and Akintola Walliams.”
While commenting on the state of Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) strike, Oladiyun said it’s unproductive to continue to blame either the government or the union for the impasse.
Oladiyun said: “ASUU has been on strike for eight months and students have been forced to stay at home and efforts to resolve the strike actions have been abortive.
“We cannot continue to blame any of the parties involved, rather, CLAM has decided to spearhead the involvement of the country’s education stakeholders to show concern for the plight of Nigerian students whose future is being threatened as a result of the continuous strike action and closure of universities.”
