Since the last academic session, each
new student of the Lagos State University, Ojo, has been paying between
N240,000 and N345,000 per session. The tuition payable depends on a
student’s course of study. Before the new fee regime, rate was N25,000
per student. But in spite of this new tuition, which many will consider
huge, compared to what obtains in other public higher institutions,
the state of physical and academic facilities is way far off what is
expected in a university.
For one, a visitor to the institution
will be welcome by floodwater-filled potholes on the less than two
kilometres road that runs through the heart of the citadel. It is the
only major road on the main campus of the 30-year-old institution. This
makes driving through the campus hectic.
As many members of the academic
community agree, the environment is everything but beautiful. Whenever
it rains, car parks and some faculties, including the Faculty of
Education and the Postgraduate School, would become water-logged. Some
lecture rooms are dilapidated, while some laboratories, especially the
one in the Botany and Fishery Department, are empty. Only some slab-like
tables, chalkboards and ceiling fans in the room give you the
impression that you are in a lab.
Investigations also reveal that LASU’s
Internet facility has stopped working since about five months ago, a
situation that has forced lecturers to rely on their own modems to
browse the web for research purposes. Some lecturers add that the
Internet facility was even so slow while it worked that they had to
depend on their modems.
The new fee regime also seems to be
dealing a death blow on the institution, as many candidates are no
longer seeking admission to LASU. For instance, as at July 19, only
about 1,100 candidates had registered for the post-Unified Tertiary
Matriculation Examination of the university. This is despite the fact
that the admission quota given to LASU by the National Universities
Commission for the 2013/2014 academic session is about 5,000.
But if the students are afraid, their
lecturers are not. Rather, many of them are angry. In fact, the
lecturers are now at daggers-drawn with management over the state of
affairs in the university, particularly their unmet demands. The
Chairman, Academic Staff Union of Universities in LASU, Dr. Adekunle
Idris, who articulated the grouse of the lecturers against the
university, says if something urgent is not done about the union’s
requests, the institution should prepare for a long closure, even after
the resolution of the ongoing national strike called by the national
leadership of ASUU. The university and the Lagos State Government, Idris
says, should use the opportunity of the ongoing strike to resolve all
the issues raised by the local chapter.
“Otherwise, LASU lecturers will start a
local version of the action and we will not call it off until they
listen to us and meet our demands,” Idris says.
So, what are the issues? Idris says they
are many. These, he notes, include unpaid salary arrears; unpaid earned
allowance; planned programme rationalisation and its attendant job
loss; inadequate physical and academic facilities; non-implementation of
agreement, especially on retirement age for lecturers on professorial
cadre; non-implementation of single-term tenure for principal officers;
and planned deduction of tax in arrears.
However, the Acting Director, Centre
for Information, Press and Public Relations of LASU, Dr. Sola Fosudo,
has denied all these allegations. According to him, some of the demands –
such as retirement age of lecturers, implementation of FG/ASUU
agreement and single-term tenure for principal officers – would need the
input of the state House of Assembly before they can be met.
“The Governing Council is looking at the issues and I believe that they would be resolved soon,” he says.
On inadequate facilities, Fosudo
explains that the authorities have started the construction of some
buildings, including the Senate Building, new library complex and some
faculty buildings.
“Development cannot come in a day, but I
can tell you that a lot of projects are ongoing on the campus. The
construction of our Senate Building is on, that of the new library is on
and so also are some faculty buildings. LASU is in the process of
transformation and I think the management and the state government
deserve commendation for the job that has been done since the new
tuition was introduced last year,” he says.
But one of the issues giving the
lecturers heartache, Idris says, is the decision of the university, in
collaboration with the state government, to hike tuition from N25,000 to
between N240,000 and N345,000 per session. This decision, the union
argues, is counterproductive and contravenes one of the objectives of
the founding fathers of LASU – to provide ready access to higher
education for citizens of the state, regardless of social origin or
income. The lecturers say it has greatly reduced student intake, thus
making LASU the university of last choice among admission seekers.
“How many Lagosians can afford such a
huge amount when the minimum wage is just N18,000? This is a public
university set up by proactive and forward-looking leaders to give
opportunities of higher education to the citizens of the state in
particular, and Nigerians in general, regardless of social origin or
income. We have told them to reduce this tuition; otherwise, the
institution will bleed to death. If the state government wants to start a
business university, they should start on a clean note and leave LASU
for the poor masses. They should not turn LASU into a private
university,” Idris says.
He adds that due to the low student
intake, the management has decided to rationalise a number of
programmes. This, according to him, will lead to job loss. For instance,
he says, the management has decided to phase out degree programmes in
Yoruba Language, Islamic Studies and Christian Religious Studies.
Fosudo, who is also a seasoned actor, however, says the university is
not planning to send any lecturer into the job market.
“The university is not planning to sack
any lecturer, rather, what we are doing is to restructure our programmes
to make them more effective and in tune with the need of the society.
In fact, the Governing Council has just approved the establishment of a
faculty of agriculture. The university will soon start the departments
of film and performing arts, cultural studies and marine. Are they
saying that a lecturer in Yoruba language won’t fit in into a cultural
studies department? Nobody should be afraid of job loss. All that the
management is doing is to make the university more relevant to the
society,” he says.
Fosudo waves off the tuition hike question, saying the criticism is a belated issue.
Idris also alleges that though the
university owes lecturers and non-academic members of staff 17 months
salary arrears, it has failed to engage in dialogue with the union on
how the debt would be paid. He explains that the state government agreed
to pay 50 per cent of the arrears, while LASU should pay the remaining
50 per cent. The state government, he says, “has honoured its own part
of the deal while the management has offered to pay 20 per cent
alongside our July salary, but they are not saying anything about how to
pay the rest and we told them that we should meet on this. So far, they
have refused to meet with us.”
On this, Fosudo, who describes himself
as a member of ASUU, says the 20 per cent has been paid on Friday,
together with the July salary, adding that the remaining would be paid
soon. Idris confirms this but insists that the method adopted by the
management is faulty.
“You cannot stop your employer from
crediting your account, but what we are saying is that before part of
the arrears were paid, we ought to have met to discuss how the remaining
part would be paid. But they didn’t discuss anything with us. Anyway,
our position is that the money must be paid this year and in two
instalments,” Idris notes.
The lecturers also complain about the
inadequate funding of departments. They say they cannnot fathom why each
department is given what Idris calls a paltry N10,000 as running cost
per month or why a dean of a faculty should be given N10,000 as fuel
allowance for the same period. Before now, a dean collected N40, 000 for
fuel per month.
Idris also expresses surprise at the way
and manner lecturers on temporary appointments are being treated.
According to him, rather than renew their appointments, management has
been dillydallying.
“By the time these good hands leave, the
workload will become unbearable for those left behind and the result
will not be enviable,” he says.
He also argues that the lecturers are
not happy with the way and manner the state government enforces any law
made by the Federal Government when it favours it and how it foot-drags
when such laws are not in its favour
“They are quick to implement the FG’s
tax law, but when it comes to the implementation of agreement, they will
remember that we are in a federal state. If they have adopted the same
FG agreement at Lagos State Polytechnic, what is stopping them from
doing same in LASU?” he asks.
‘I wish my mum was here to see this’
Meanwhile, several students have
expressed disappointment over the state of facilities in the
institution. In interviews with one of our correspondents, they urged
the university authorities to upgrade the system to standards that
obtain in other recognised institutions.
Ola, 300 level Law student
To the best of my knowledge, I see no
reason why LASU should be charging that much. The facilities we have on
ground do not match the amount the students are paying.
Segun, Jambite
I chose LASU because I felt all that was
needed was to have much money to pay my school fees. I see it as a
private school, but I am surprised that when I got here to prepare for
my post-UTME, the school is not worth the amount being charged as
tuition. I wish my mum was here to see this road and the other places.
Taiwo, 200, Education
I regret that I struggled to pay last
year. The funniest thing is that the high fee started during my set.
Look at how the road to my faculty is. Do they show that we are paying
much and do you want me to commend the university for this?
Ayomikun, 400, Engineering
To me, the school is yet to fully meet
the standard of the money being collected as tuition. Although the
management has started building some structures, what we have on ground
does not match the amount we are paying.
Tobiloba, 300 Level, Faculty of Art
I don’t want to say the school
management cheated the students for paying that much. But what I know
and I am sure of is that nothing has really changed except the fee. The
lecturers still use the same method and the old facilities to teach us.
Pelumi, Social Sciences, 400 Level
For me, LASU still has a lot of work to
do if it must justify the fee being charged. I am about to graduate and
I know the kind of experience I have. I can even say that those of us
that are outstanding students are so due to our personal effort and not
because of what the university can offer.
THE National Universities Commission (NUC) has rejected several
allegations leveled against it in the August 16 editorial of a national
newspaper (not The Guardian).
Ekiti State Deputy Governor Prof. Modupe
Adelabu, on Monday identified education as the best legacy parents
should strive to give to their children.