Emmanuel Awari-Jalingo
The Bwacha Gubernatorial Campaign Council (BGCC) has condemned in strong terms the protest carried out by the students of the Taraba State University Jalingo on Monday 9th January 2023.
This was contained in a statement signed and made available to SUMMIT Post, by the Director of Media and Publicity BGCC, Mr. Aaron Artimas in Jalingo.
The statement reads:
“Jalingo, the Taraba State Capital, woke up today, 9th January 2023, to a very irritating and distressing protest by students of the Taraba State University TSU. following the postponement of their examinations.
“Some of the protesting students, according to information, the Students took to the major highways protesting the cancellation of their examinations as a result of the strike action embarked upon by the academic staff of the University in protest of the failure of the state government to settle a backlog of their salaries and allowances.
“Although this is not unusual under the Darius administration, the Bwacha Gubernatorial Campaign Council BGCC strongly condemns this negatively recurring decimal, which continues to portray the state in a bad light and frustrate the future of our youth.,” It pointed out.
The statement also expressed worried about the safety of the youth following the escalation of the protest, resulting in the deployment of armed soldiers and anti-riot police to dispersed the students.
It further regretted that the Taraba State government has constantly demonstrated its inability to manage the State University which leads to various circles of protests, shutdowns, and unstable academic calendars. 
“This unfortunate saga has a serious negative impact on the dwindling fortune of the university as one of the best state-owned tertiary institutions in the country.
“While we appeal to the students to exercise restraints in expressing their grievance on the postponement of their examinations, the state government should immediately pay the lecturers their entitlements to save this ugly situation.
“Considering the importance of education to our social and economic development, the government must prioritize education as the only way of securing the future of our children and ensuring stability in the state,” the statement emphasized.
The university students’ leader, Salisu Waziri called on the state government to pay the lecturers, to enable them to write their examinations.
“The government should pay them their rights because they have families to take care of,” he added.
Meanwhile, the lecturers boycotted the first-semester examination that was billed for today Monday 9th January 2023 as a result of non-payment of their outstanding salaries.
Recall that the Joint Action Committee
(JAC) of Non-Academic Staff of University (NASU) and Senior Staff Association of Nigeria Universities (SSANU), Taraba State University Jalingo, on Friday protested around the university premises over the non-payment of their salaries and hazard allowances.
However, the Vice Chancellor of the university, Prof. Sunday Bako while addressing the protesting staff, assured that the university management and the government were working hard to meet their legitimate demands.