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We live in a regime where there is subtle, some say obvious, declaration of war against education. I mean education for the poor masses. As if to say “if you must go to school you must belong. If you do not belong, never could you make it to school.” I don’t know how to put, but the way I put it, I think, captures the ugly reality which manifests itself in the conscienceless and heartless increment of school fees across the federal government owned universities. We can not blame university managements for this, they are currently being denied oxygen to breathe. But because these universities dread total collapse and death, students become victims.
By implication, poor students and impoverished parents with children in universities—who had been struggling to pay school fees through their sweat—will now have to pay through their blood. Under this stifling economic situation, it is normal to have a lot of dropouts. Yes! Dropouts! Though not for being academically poor, but for their inability to survive government’s onslaught and their helplessness. It is very unfortunate that some of these politicians who currently constitute the Nigerian ruling class are either beneficiaries of free education or paraders (possessors) of questionable certificates, or both.
The poor, very soon, will be totally chased away from our public universities if this hike in school fees is not reversed. The political class will, by then, finally have their say and monopolize the universities for their wards. By then, they will be at ease, have some sense of relief, and even a deep sigh of relief. As if to say, “at last, we achieved our dream. Our children will now attend universities without any fear of one-on-one contact with these “bloody” masses whose diseased poverty could be contagious.”
Some universities commenced new session some weeks ago but students’ turn out is still very low due to the overwhelming poverty in the land. Many Nigerian students celebrated the Students Loan Bill when it was signed into law. Why the loan has not come to their aid to pay their school fees is both laughable and ironical. Many “beneficiaries” of students’ loan—even in saner climes—ended up being indebted for the whole of their life. Taking the loan is like being affectionately invited as a free man to a dinning table only to be shackled and thrown into slavery. Some students naively think the money (loan) will just drop gbam into their account while they judiciously invest it in some petty businesses and use whatever profit accrued therefrom for their school fees and other basic necessities. I pity them. I can see, they have started pitying themselves.
Eight months ago, during the inglorious, corruption-ridden and unforgettable regime of Buhari when the bill was first debated, in an article titled “Students Loan Bill: Understand It Before You Conclude It Is Good For You”, I wrote: “Let’s just hope that before the Bill actually gets the executive approval, the rough edges of some of its provisions in its first reading are smoothened to make sense. Mind you, once the Bill is passed into law, students should be ready to pay a prohibitively scaring and exorbitantly excruciating school fee.” What happened? The bill was passed into law with its wrinkled edges.
We have started witnessing it. Yet we have not witnessed anything. The 200 to 300 percent hike in fees is just an introduction to the main hike. Tuition fee, as it is, is still free. When that is removed the way oil subsidy was removed—which is why students are encouraged to take loan—there wouldn’t be difference between private and public universities in terms of fees. What if all public universities were privatized? I won’t be surprised, anyway. Already, private universities have outnumbered the public ones. Poor Nigerians just have to give way to the Ogas at the top and their children.
That said, His Excellency Taraba State Governor Agbu Kefas stands out. His sympathy for the masses and phila for education must be commended. I referred to him in my last week article titled “Your Excellency, are You Real?” I was corrected that it should be “Are You for Real?” Tarabians and their well wishers were elated that the Governor slashed the state’s university school fee by 50 percent. I joined them in their elation and hoped Taraba will be having a patriotic governor for the first time. Then a fellow from Taraba told me His Excellency’s philia for education is legendary and that he personally benefitted from his scholarship seventeen years ago.
After the article was published in the early morning of Friday, we saw His Excellency again on that very Friday declared free education in all state-owned primary and secondary schools—starting from next academic session. In his words: “Let me announce to you that by the next academic session, the state government will take responsibility for school fees, and all of you will attend school free of charge…to ensure brighter future for our state.” That is Governor Kefas. The future the Federal Government has for education in Nigeria is sad to discuss.
I am happy this is about to happen in a state in the North. A governor again, like Zulum of Borno, is about to take the war against ignorance seriously. Ignorance must be fought with all our strengths because it is ugly. It must be fought tooth and nail especially now that the Federal Government is resisting the fight against ignorance by its callous policy of commercializing education to the detriment of the common people.
May I use this medium to call on all Nigerians to join hands together to fight ignorance. Governors Kefas, Zulum and their ilk, should be supported in their drive towards stamping out ignorance from their states. Nigerians must also reject hike in school fees before the hike rejects us. It will definitely reject most of us who are not moneybags. Let’s make the policy DOA.
I am aware that the Federal House of Representatives had, in a motion moved by Honourable Aliyu Madaki (NNPP, Kano) few days ago during plenary, asked the government to suspend hike in all federal government owned universities. Madaki said some universities had increased fees by over 200 per cent and equally increased accommodation fees by 100 per cent. He noted that the increments are coming at a time when households in Nigeria are battling with high inflation and other economic challenges.
This is a commonsensical argument. Why our torturers in their heartless democratic babban riga choose to add more layers of pain to our current pains is puzzling. All we can say is “there is God”.
Abdulkadir Salaudeen
salahuddeenabdulkadir@gmail.com
