Nigeria students must vote, tweeps lament disenfranchisement moves

…..Nigerian students must vote, and tweeps decry attempts to disenfranchise them

Some Nigerians on Twitter are bemoaning and protesting purported efforts to disenfranchise university students as the general election draws nearer.

Twitter users are urging the Academic Staff Union of Universities and other tertiary institution unions to declare a holiday for students to travel home to pick up their Permanent Voter Cards and cast their ballots in the elections. This is apparently in response to a front page headline by a national newspaper that reads, “Elections: 3.5m students won’t vote.”

Some Twitter users criticize ASUU for going on strike for eight months in 2022 but refusing to let students a break to vote in the general election using the hashtag #Nigeriastudentsmustvote and a popular image with the same text.

According to Dailyupates, ASUU launched on an eight-month strike that began on February 14 and ended on October 14, 2022, closing Nigerian universities to academic activities during that time.

@firstladyship, a Twitter user, stated: “26 million registered voters are students. Throughout the eight-month ASUU strike, they registered at home. The administrations of Nigerian universities should permit students to return home before the election. During such time, kids should be with their parents. A pause of two weeks will do.

There is no Nigeria without students, remarked @dreyinker, another user. They must be given the opportunity to choose their next leader together.

@Jay 1883 added, “Lagos State proclaimed three days of holiday to allow state workers to pick up their PVCs. Allow students to leave class if institutions across the nation don’t proclaim a break so that voting can take place. You can travel without the approval of the school. Vote intelligently and forfeit whatever needs to be forfeited.

“Those years of the Greatest Nigerian Students are Gone,” tweeted @efe mills. If not, who gave birth to a monkey for students to spend eight months at home, registered to vote, but unable to do so since the polls are open and they cannot get their PVCs? If this is the game plan, the outcome of the election will suffer collateral damage.

Dear ASUU, there is no need for an emergency meeting, @rectocriuz responded in response to their message. Simply call a break on classes in February. All students should go collect their PVCs and cast their votes. This is really a small cost to be borne in exchange for a better Nigeria.

Millions of votes are about to be squandered, according to @DrDodiey. Nigerian students must cast ballots.

Sad that Nigerian students won’t be casting ballots in this election, bemoaned @Morris Monye. That is almost 4 million people.

It’s not simple like that, @Iykonic tweeted in response to @Morris Monye. Although I go to school in the East, I live in the North. There, during the (ASUU) strike, (I) performed PVC. Due to the distance, coming back to vote won’t be simple. There are a number of Lagosians at my school as well. Currently, it costs roughly 20k to travel from the East to Lagos.

@abelgifted48, a different Twitter user, commented, “For some of us, it is hard to vote oo. My polling place is in Makurdi, in the neighboring state of Borno, which is roughly a seven to eight-hour drive from Minna, where I attend school. To make matters worse, I have exams the Friday before the presidential election and the following Monday.

This is entirely incorrect. I would like to vote so badly, but I can’t.

Noting the importance of the general election, @UkomahM tweeted, “Due to the distance of the schools from their homes, students need 2-3 weeks to be home, pick their PVCs, locate their various polling units & vote! This is the most important election, not just in Nigeria, but in the whole of Africa.”

Several other tweeps have been lending their voices to the call for tertiary institutions to suspend academic activities to allow students to travel home to participate in the forthcoming elections, with hashtags and visuals flying around.