Children of the masses are major victims of ASUU strike – Akeredolu

The First Lady of Ondo State, Mrs. Betty Anyanwu-Akeredolu has disclosed that children of the masses bear the grunt of incessant industrial action embarked upon by the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), in the country.

Mrs. Akeredolu who made the statement at the launch of a locally written Medical book titled, Essential Textbook of Medicine, at the main campus of Osun State University, Osogbo, stressed the need for ASUU to reach compromise with a view to ending the strike action.

While stressing the need for policymakers to create an enabling environment for medical practitioners to excel in the country, when commending the authors of the book for extending the frontiers of medical education.

“We want more of this type of intellectual offering from our universities, particularly continuous medical research on breast and cervical cancer being a perennial malaise that is taking down our women exponentially.

“There is so much to do and academics must be on the front pew in finding lasting solutions to our myriad of challenges, including medical problems. It is on this note that calls on the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) to find a middle ground towards resolving the lingering strike in the interest of our youths who usually bear the brunt, particularly the children from humble backgrounds.

“The authors, in spite of the prevailing scorching economic difficulties and uninspiring work conditions for academics in the country, are committed to deepening the knowledge base of medical students and practitioners and also extending the frontiers of medical education by producing this very resourceful textbook.

“The production of the book is timely, given that it’s produced at a time when our medical professionals are deserting the country for greener pastures at an alarming rate. It is therefore hoped that this intervention would motivate practicing and upcoming medics to be likewise committed to growing medical practice in Nigeria. Besides nourishing our medical libraries, the textbook would make a huge relief to the dearth of medical textbooks produced by African authors”, she said.

In his remark, the book’s editor-in-chief, Professor Christopher Alebiosu said the book, which was written by 155 authors across Universities in Nigeria, is aimed at producing local-based solutions to most medical problems in the country.

“We thought of this because most of the books we use to reach medicine since 1998 were written by foreigners. The books did not take care of five to six areas of medicine, which include geriatrics, family medicines, but this one dwells on those areas seriously”, he said.