Kingsley Moghalu, former deputy governor of the Central Bank
of Nigeria (CBN), says the “political priority” attached to education in
Nigeria is “very low”.
Moghalu spoke on Tuesday during an interview with Channels
Television.
The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has been on
strike since February 14 to demand improved funding for universities, review of
salaries for lecturers, among other issues.
Several meetings between ASUU and the federal government
have ended in deadlock.
Speaking on the lingering ASUU strike, Moghalu said Nigeria
needs to invest more in education instead of salaries of politicians.
“We need to invest a lot more in the educational system —
the salaries of our teachers and professors in Nigerian universities, compared
to what our legislators earn in the national assembly. I don’t mean to be
disrespectful, but there are reports that a senator takes home anything from
N20 million to N30 million every month based on various allowances, not the
actual salaries,” he said.
“Sometimes, people are very clever. They don’t say ‘my
salary is N10 million.’ They say ‘my salary is N1 million’, and then there are
several allowances that amount to N15 million.
“So, we are investing
a lot of money in the pay of politicians, but if we want to be honest, how
productive are they compared to if we had invested a similar amount of money in
paying university and secondary school teachers and building the facilities
that we need, creating the laboratories, and so on?
“The political priority that we attach to education is very
low. That is one of the reasons for the situation that we are in now.”
Asked if he believes the federal government cannot afford
ASUU’s demands, Moghalu said the government needs to review its priorities.
“I think the federal government is not able to afford it
because they have not prioritised it. Everybody sees a lot of money being spent
in this country. Everybody sees a lot of money being borrowed in this country,”
he said.
“We borrow sometimes
for physical infrastructure. Why can’t you borrow to build your society in a
very foundational way?
“Why can’t you borrow to pay the N1.3 trillion that ASUU and
Jonathan’s government agreed would be paid in 2012 and over a period of time.”
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