THERE WAS A UNION by Bernard Samuel

THERE WAS A UNION

_[A cursory tale of great Ife UNION historical feat and the degeneration to its downward trend]_

The primary function of a union anywhere in the world is first among others, to stand and fight when need be for the exclusive interest of its members, and a negation of this function boils down to the question of its capacity. However, a constant performance of such function among others by it overtime evolves for it an ideology which it’s known for. Be it ‘egalitarianism’ ‘capitalism’ ‘socialism’, a union must stand for something.
 
Great Ife students Union will however be the center piece of this discourse, which is built on the principle of egalitarianism, solidarity and intellectualism. It’s however in its golden age one of the very few vibrant and fearless Union in the country, not because of its population or magical architectural design of its environment which is second to non, but because of its intellectual radicalism cum political vibrancy and social potency.
    
Its however saddening, that a Union that pride itself as the hotbed of intellectual firework and a beacon of hope of this nation is now taking a southward dive into ideological degringolade and is continually languishing in poverty of cutting-edge ideas. How can it be heard that a Union that used to tackle and proffer solutions to national and international debate, [e.g. the IMF loan during IBB regime, ‘Banking Reform’ policy of the Central Bank under the governorship of CHUKUMA SOLUDO  to mention but a few.] have today lost the fervor and capacity. How else can one reconcile the fact that an institution known for vibrant unionism, and budding students culture is fast than expected becoming a ghost of its past.

  There was a time, when if Ife sneezed, the whole country shakes, the fear of its vibrancy brings wisdom. There was a time when Ife played active role in keeping tyrannical government at check-military and civilian. Great Ife provides veritable model in democratic system. There was a time when Great Ife is capable of influencing national policies, like the dualization of the IFE/IBADAN road in the early 1990s due to agitation of students after an increased in the death tow on the road. Ife was instrumental and took a frontier in the ‘Alli must go struggle’ of 1978 against the obnoxious policies on education during the General Olusegun Obasanjo regime having Colonel Amodu Alli as the minister of education, where a repressive sum of 50k was added to the already existing 1.50k feeding allowance, to mention but a few are policies which this union have changed.

    There was a union, which denied a serving minister entry into campus even with all his security apparatus. [Christopher Adebayo Ojo SAN, in 2005]. There was a union, that a corrupt politician and presidential aspirant is been told to his face [Olusegun Obasanjo 1998]. There was a Union, that even recently led a protest of dissatisfaction on the president of Nigeria, in person of Goodluck Jonathan and  Ayo Fayose of Ekiti State when they attended a meeting at Oduduwa hall on the Friday 28th November 2014, under the auspices of ‘Yoruba Unity Forum’. There was a union, which is capable of giving an award that is nationally recognized, the award of ‘Senior Advocate of the Masses’ to Gani fawehenmi in 1988 due to his meritorious impact in the country. A union that has been the training ground for fearless, brilliant activist in the country, in likes of Bamidele Aturu,Dipo Fashina ,Opeyemi Bamidele, Mike Ozekhome, and even recently Akinola Saburi, Oluwole Engels to mention but a few.

It’s so sadden to note that a once vibrant, intelligent and peoples oriented Greatife Students Union has become a toothless dog, decorated in a cage, clueless and monetized. A Union that once handle national issues and debates cannot even today successfully handle its own affair. A union that once change national policies, cannot today rise against the repressive policies of its management of victimization, suspension and open battery. A union that had the capacity to unseat a minister based on his anti-students polices cannot today take a unified fight against its present crop of corrupt and intellectually vacant leadership.

A union that would declare corrupt individual persona non grata is today headed by unscrupulous elements who are   inviting this same chain of individuals for talks [ Lasun Yusulf ] and even give them awards [Guru Maraji] all in an attempt to feed their bellies, What a pathetic situation. A union that once detained DSS operatives after a failed attempt to arrest a lecturer, is today praising actions OAU Security [ Ife/Modakeke war veterans] on the public abuse on its student and subsequent arrest of students who are on a peaceful protest against the animalistic welfare condition on campus. There was a Union….

  Hmmm, history will never forget the labour of our heroes past who built this Union with their blood, and sweat. In the same vein history will never absorb the traitors that sold our collective spirit, and dashed our concerted effort on the altar of their belies. Turning and turning the widening gyre, the falcon cannot hear the falconer, things fall apart, the center cannot hold. Yes, things fall apart; the above words of W B Yeats contain more than a kernel of truth about the present condition of Great ife Union, A bitter truth at that.

     Alas, the time is now where we should take concerted effort to ensure we re-stamp our spot and re-echo our voice on national and global issues.

#OurUnionShallBeGreatAgain

amadla awetu

Bernard Samuel
[ BERNARD  P. ]    
                                                                                                                                           A Student of LAW,  Obafemi Awolowo University Ile-Ife and a public affair analyst.