The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has said the Student Loan Bill, which President Bola Tinubu signed into law is capable of sending many students out of school.
On Monday, the president signed the bill saying it is a fulfillment of one of his campaign promises. Many, including critics of his government, had hailed him for matching his words with action.
But Prof. Emmanuel Osodeke, ASUU President, said the law might have an adverse effect on millions of prospective students who rely on tuition-free higher institutions of learning to acquire knowledge. He said: “A country where more than 133 million are living below the poverty line and you want to introduce tuition fees? It will be counterproductive.
“Every Nigerian should know what is going to happen next and there may likely be another bill waiting for signature that will introduce tuition fees. If the bill indicated that the loan is to pay tuition fees and there are no tuition fees in Nigerian universities, then what is your next approach?”
Osodeke said the bill is not new, revealing how the union rejected it when former President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration brought it up. He, however, noted that the union is yet to have access to the accurate copy of the law signed by Tinubu, adding that there was need to get and study it.
“We have said long ago, in 2017, to President Buhari when they came up with the issue of tuition fees, that every student will pay N1 million and we said you cannot put that in our agreement and you cannot use that to negotiate with us and with the nature of the country we have today, there is no way that will work.”
“What will happen is that the majority of students whose parents cannot afford it will pull out of school in anger and you know what that means, they will fight the society back. But let us get the correct information first before knowing the next steps,” he added.
