… Justifies Increased Tuition Fees, Sundry Charges By Universities
The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), has faulted the Federal Government’s students’ loan scheme, opting for a grant and scholarship to support indigent students.
This was part of the recommendations reached at the end of ASUU’s South-South zonal press conference held in Calabar, yesterday.
While reiterating her earlier calls for revitalization and increased funding of public universities in Nigeria, ASUU said it was disheartening for the government to contemplate such a scheme which is capable of plunging Nigerian students’ into perpetual indebtedness.
This came amidst the union’s tactical justification for the sudden increment of tuition fees by some public universities in Nigeria, lately.
According to the union, if Nigeria’s public universities were properly funded there wouldn’t be any need for increased fees and sundry charges which ironically mounts further pressure on already pauperized Nigerian parents.
It said, “As you are aware, ASUU has been at the forefront of pushing for revitalization. This still remains a strong point in our engagements with the government. This is why when government claimed to have budgeted in 2023 following our struggle of 2022, the sum of One Hundred and Seventy Billion Naira (N170b), we believed it was for a tranche of EAA and revitalization.
“Sadly though, up till as we speak, not a dime of the said amount has been released. We believe if this and the earlier agreement of One Trillion, Three Hundred Billion (1.3t) had been released over a period of six years, the much pressure on the limited infrastructure would have been greatly eased.
“This is the reason why some universities are increasing fees and sundry charges, further adding to the pressure of already pauperized Nigerian parents and guardians.
“The union reiterates its extant opposition to increase in fees and sundry charges as well as introduction of students loan scheme. The students loan scheme is an off shoot of international lending agencies including IMF and the world bank, and the scheme is targeted at mortgaging the entire system while keeping our bright, but indigent students in perpetual indebtedness.
“Please, note that this is aimed at further underfunding public universities at the behest of their masters , so the private universities owned by politicians could access the funds meant for public schools. The union proposed that if government wants to invest in the lives of Nigerian students, it should do so through grants and scholarships rather than through the everlasting indebtedness in the pretext of students’ loan”, ASUU partly stated in a joint communique issued.
Meanwhile, the union has appealed to the federal government to release all the withheld entitlements of her members including the seven (7) months unpaid salaries, in order to guarantee industrial peace and harmony in the Nigerian universities’ community.
She said the government has no moral justification whatso ever to continue suffocating Nigerian academics, adding that all efforts made by the union to find a common ground over the protracted impasse had sadly been rebuffed by the Nigerian authorities.
The communique was jointly signed by the zonal chairperson, Comrade Happiness Uduk, Comrade Chidi Mbah, chairperson of ABSU; Comrade Inyang Udosen of AKSU; Comrade Ikechukwu Igwenyi, chairperson of EBSU.
Others include Comrade Louis Omenyi, chairperson of FUNAI; Comrade Patrick Ushie of CRUTECH; Comrade Peter Ubi of UNICAL as well as Comrade Opeyemi Olajide of UNIUYO.
