By Olusegun Olanrewaju
Students, seething with rage, yesterday made good their threat to ground the streets and the airports over the protracted strike by the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU).

They barricaded the roads leading to the local and international airports in Ikeja and threatened to extend their street action to the nation’s seaports in the Apapa axis of Lagos State.

The shutdown was sequel to the lingering seven-month-long industrial action embarked by university teachers in the public sector, which the students, parents, and stakeholders say has caused untold hardship to them and is harming their future.

ASUU had since February 14 embarked on strike action to compel the Federal Government to implement the agreement it signed with the union on proper funding of public universities and improved condition of service of lecturers over 10 years ago.

Right from the early hours of the day, the angry students occupied the roads leading to the domestic and international wings of the Murtala Mohammed Airport (MMIA) in Ikeja.

That signalled what uprising there was to expect on the day as their protest resulted in traffic gridlock and halting vehicular movement in and out of the airport and extended to other parts of the mega city.

Yesterday’s protest came in the wake of a similar action of rage a few days earlier when students occupied and blocked the Lagos-Ibadan expressway and the Ibadan-Ife road in Oyo State.

To register the effect of the action, videos went viral showing the protesters, in their hundreds chanting slogans and carrying placards, calling on the Federal Government to meet the demands of their embattled lecturers, as a prelude to facilitating their return to school.

Placards bearing various inscriptions were displayed, amid the chanting solidarity of songs.

Security officials had a hell of a time at the airport premises maintaining order.

Travelers going to the international and local wings had a rough experience yesterday morning through the afternoon.

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Some of them complained of suffering from what they tagged ‘double jeopardy.

The students started mobilising as early as 6am. They attempted to make their way to the MMIA but were stopped by security operatives, who restricted the movement of the protesters to the main road linking the Airport to Oshodi and Mile 2 expressways.

The protesters were led by NAN’s National Taskforce Chairman, Olamide Ojo, Vice President External Affairs, Akinleye Babatunde, Public Relations Officer, Giwa Yisa Temitope, and Zone “D” Coordinator, Adegboyega Emmanuel, among other NAN officers

They chanted solidarity songs and remained non-violent, while the security operatives also complied with the rules of engagement devoid of high-handedness.

“We are not fighting with nobody. All we want is for ASUU to get back to work and for the government to behave well by honouring the agreements reached with ASUU”, one of the students’ leaders said.

The situation was compounded by a heavy downpour recorded in most parts of the Lagos metropolis yesterday.

The heavy rain induced heavy flooding and traffic gridlock which sent commuters along the Apapa-Oshodi-MMIA Airport road reeling in pain.

The grinding effect of the discomfort was the icing on the cake of the protest embarked on by public university students in the country.

Other road users, including students, workers, and particularly staffers of the airports, also suffered inconveniences as they struggled to get to their destinations.

The student body, through its chairman, NANS National Taskforce on #EndASUUStrikeNow, Olamide Ojo, said, “For the past few days, we have been protesting simultaneously round the states of the country to protest the continued ASUU strike which has lasted over seven months as a result of the ‘crass irresponsibility’ of the Federal Government to fulfil the terms of the agreement they willingly signed with ASUU.

“As an Association, we are saddened by this development which has resulted in the closure of universities. And, this act, we believe, is deliberate by the Federal Government to deny the children of the common Nigerian access to quality education which violates the provisions of Chapter Two of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as amended).”

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*Foreign, local travellers walk long distances, pay touts to carry luggage

Many travellers, including foreigners, had to walk long distances, while touts who offered to carry their luggage charged exorbitant fares.

Travellers complained yesterday afternoon, amidst the heavy rain, that they trekked for kilometres to access the airport.

One of them said, “We paid between N10, 000 and N20, 000 to get our luggage to the airport. There were touts everywhere. The situation was not funny.”

Many commuters also grumbled that they walked long distances to the airport, carrying their luggage on their heads.

One of them complained loudly of having been stuck in traffic as early as 7am.

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*Threatens to extend protest to seaports

Meanwhile, the students have promised to consolidate on the ‘gains’ of their protest. They have threatened to extend further action to the seaports.

There is a warning that business activities at the Apapa ports complexes may be grounded, with a huge loss of funds if the protesting university undergraduates carry out a further threat to block the ports.

NANS has also said it is ready to ground the Nigerian Ports Authority and the Third Mainland Bridge in Lagos, should the Federal Government fail to yield grounds in addressing the impasse.

Overwhelmed with the situation, security operatives, especially the police, appealed to the protesting students to vacate the road, claiming it is an international route.

The protesters, however, remained adamant, insisting that “even when we leave today, we will be back tomorrow again.”

However, the Deputy Commissioner of Police in charge of the airport, Kayode Sunday, while addressing the protesting students, pleaded with them to either leave the scene or create a way for vehicles to pass.