ASUU Gives Scholarship To 50 Most-deserving Unizik Students

The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has presented a cheque of N3 million to fifty most deserving students in the Nnamdi Azikiwe University, UNIZIK, Awka, Anambra State.The fifty students will receive the sum of sixty thousand naira (N60,000) each.


Presenting the scholarship cheque to the beneficiary, at the ASUU Secretariat, Unizik Awka, on Wednesday (December 8, 2021), the Varsity branch Chairman, Comrade Stephen Ufoaroh, said the gesture was to support the deserving students to complete their academic pursuit, despite the financial challenges the Union is currently facing in the country.


“ASUU-Unizik still saw the need to help in alleviating the suffering of our students, who have also borne the pains of the ruling class insensitivity to the suffering masses of this country.“We members of this school tasked ourselves to raise the fund for this scholarship being awarded today, (December 8, 2021) This sacrifice is part of our social responsibility to our students and their parents.


Ufoaroh noted that the award programme by God’s grace has become an annual event in the University.He disclosed that ASUU National is also awarding a scholarship of one hundred thousand naira (100,000), to the most deserving student in all Public Universities in Nigeria, of which a student of UNIZIK, Miss Ikele Chinenye Elizabeth is a beneficiary.


“This scholarship award is evidence that ASUU as a union understands the plight of our students and as such we will go any length to protect their interest, which has made us resist every attempt by the Federal Government of Nigeria to introduce tuition fees in public universities, because we know that many of our students are merely striving to succeed and can hardly pay the current service charges, being paid in Federal and State Universities, Ufoaroah explained.He urged the students to see ASUU as partners in the struggle to save the soul of the public universities, by working together to compel government at all levels to adequately fund education, so as to give every youth opportunity to access quality education.He described the event as a history-making event in the university.


He said that the award is for students of the 2020/2021 academic session.In his address, the ASUU National Chairman, Professor Emmanuel Osodeke, said ASUU has been and will continue to be at the forefront of free education in Nigeria.The ASUU boss, who was represented by the Owerri Zonal Chairman of the Union, Mr Uzo Onyebinama, noted that ASUU is very convinced that Nigeria has the capacity to give free education to all her citizens if the political will is there.In his remarks, the Vice-Chancellor, Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Professor Charles Esimone commended the union for the kind gesture, noting that the history-making event is coming at the time when the country is currently facing all-round challenges.


He assure the Union that the University Management will continue to work in a cordial relationship for the sake of less privileged students.He advised the beneficiary students to always report their challenges to the University Management for a peaceful dialogue rather than resolving to violence.He also appealed to the students to use the fund given to them judiciously.One of the beneficiaries, Miss Ikele Chinenye Elizabeth, from the department of English and Literature, who spoke to Tribune Online on behalf of others, thanks ASUU for recognising her.According to her, I never expected it.


I am very grateful to ASUU National President, Professor Emmanuel Osodeke, the Unizik Chapter of ASUU and the Varsity Vice-Chancellor, Professor Charles Esimone for the kind gesture. I promised to reciprocate the gesture in future for those in my present condition.She prayed to God to continue to bless ASUU.The union also use the occasion to present meritorious service award to retiring members in the University for their academic contributions to the nation’s building.Tribune Online gathered that the Scholarship is the second edition in the University.