FG: N2trn needed to fund varsity education annually
As the Academic Staff Union of Universities’ strike enters one week, the Federal Government’s negotiating team has appealed to well-meaning Nigerians to prevail on the union to return to the negotiation table and resolve issues based on accurate and verifiable data.
The chairman of the team, Wale Babalakin, who addressed journalists in Lagos at the weekend, said Nigeria would require N2 trillion annually to fund university education.
According to him, the figure exceeds, in value the money available for capital projects in the country.
“We also believe that no Nigerian should be deprived of university education because of his/ her financial circumstance. This position is consistent with that of the government of President Muhammadu Buhari”, he stated.
He said his team remained committed to a permanent resolution of the recurrent industrial disputes that have militated against the progress of the Nigerian University System.”
Babalakin dismissed what he called the misinformation by the ASUU that the team proposed N500,000 tuition fee.
Babalakin, who is the ProChancellor of University of Lagos, said: “Aside from the fact that our committee has no power to impose fees on students, we are at a loss regarding the source of the said figures. However, the contradiction demonstrates clearly that the figures are incorrect and should not be countenanced by anyone. We do not know from where ASUU got the figures that it has been peddling around the whole country”.
He begged the union to return to the renegotiation table and call off the strike.
He said: “I have no immediate plan to have a private university. I have a clear idea of what it takes to fund a university and I can’t afford it. We don’t have the mandate to impose school fees. That was an unfair comment, we have not prescribed any schools fees, and we don’t know where ASUU got the prices from.
“We urge all wellmeaning Nigerians to appeal to ASUU to return to the negotiating table and resolve issues based on accurate information and verifiable data. We remain committed to a permanent resolution of the recurrent industrial disputes that have militated against the progress of the Nigerian University System. We are determined to ensure that Nigerians receive proper education”.