We’ll resist further fee hike, NANS warns tertiary institutions

The National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) has warned authorities of tertiary institutions in the country against any further increment in chargeable fees, lamenting that the current fees have become huge burdens to them and their families.

The leadership of the South-West Zone D of NANS made this known on Wednesday while addressing a press conference in Osogbo, the capital of Osun State.

According to the coordinator of the association, Taiwo Owolewa, any further rise in school fees in any of the tertiary institutions of learning in Lagos, Osun, Ogun, Ekiti, Ondo, and Oyo States would be firmly resisted by students.

“We want to address the inhumane issue of rising tuition fees in some institutions. The continued escalation of fees imposes an undue financial burden on students and their families, creating barriers to accessing quality education. Education is a fundamental right, and we will not tolerate actions that limit this right through exorbitant tuition increases.

“We strongly urge institutions considering or implementing such increases to immediately reconsider. Any further rise in fees will be met with firm resistance from the Southwest Zone of the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS), as we are determined to protect the interests of the student body against disadvantageous policies,” he said.

The students’ body has also issued a 14-day ultimatum to the management of Osun State Polytechnic, Iree, Ladoke Akintola University of Technology, and the University of Lagos (UNILAG) to reinstate Students’ Union bodies in their schools and warned other institutions to desist from scrapping the unions.

“We want to issue a strong warning to the management of institutions that are militating against our efforts via their oppressive and manipulative decisions of scrapping student unions to desist from such.

“It has come to our attention that institutions such as Osun State Polytechnic, Iree, Ladoke Akintola University of Technology, and notably the University of Lagos (UNILAG) still lack a functional Students’ Union. The National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) Zone D, under my leadership, believes that the absence of functional Students’ Unions is a glaring affront to the rights and aspirations of Nigerian students. We will not stand idle as students’ voices are silenced and their interests neglected in these institutions.

“Having exhausted the first two Cs of Aluta in advocating for the reinstatement of the Students’ Union at these campuses, we are left with the final C: Confrontation. Therefore, we hereby issue a 14-day ultimatum to UNILAG, OSPOLY, and LAUTECH to reinstate their Students’ Union. If this demand is not met, the association will mobilise a massive protest to disrupt academic activities and bring the issue to national attention. This absence undermines students’ rights and limits their ability to voice and safeguard their interests.

“Should this ultimatum pass without action, we are prepared to take decisive action to protect the rights of our students in Zone D, and we will not hesitate to use all available means, including mass protests, to ensure that our demands are met,” Owolewa stated.