LEADERSHIP
Another crisis may soon erupt in Nigeria’s public universities if their vice-chancellors approve the proposed N80,000 electricity fee per student due to the hike in power tariffs by the Nigeria Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC).
Under the regime introduced last April, NERC placed the universities under “Band A,” which either tripled or quadrupled their electricity bills.
Some universities could not pay the new bill and were consequently disconnected by their various distribution companies (DisCos).
In their search for a solution, the university authorities have considered passing the burden to the students.
This was disclosed recently by the secretary-general of the Committee of Vice-Chancellors of Nigerian Universities (CVCNU), Prof. Yakubu Ochefu.
In an interview with a national daily, Ochefu said the universities could not afford the over N200 million they were being charged monthly for electricity.
In April 2024, NERC announced a 300 percent increase in the electricity tariff paid by Band A customers from N68/KWh to N225/KWh.
Information gathered by LEADERSHIP Weekend showed that the University of Lagos (UNILAG), which paid N80 million under the old tariff structure, now coughs out N300 million monthly as electricity bills.
For Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University (ATBU) in Bauchi, its bill rose from N30 million to N55 million per month; the University of Nigeria, Nsukka (UNN) got N150 million instead of N80 million for its May bill, while the University of Ilorin (UNILORIN) bill rose from N70 million to N230 million. The situation was the same for Bayero University, Kano (BUK), whose bill rose from N30 million to N230 million.
In the light of the above, the vice-chancellors decided to introduce the N80,000 per student electricity levy.
Expectedly, this proposal has attracted the wrath of students, parents, the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) and other stakeholders in the university community.
In separate interviews with LEADERSHIP Weekend, the stakeholders said too many charges by the universities had already overburdened the students and their sponsors.
They listed some of the fees they pay in public universities as tuition fees for those owned by state governments, registration fees, acceptance fees for new intakes, examination fees, library fees, laboratory fees, sports fees, health services fees, development levies, and accommodation or hostel fees. Others are information and communication technology (ICT) fees, student union dues, departmental and faculty fees, course registration fees, and library development fees.
Since the vice-chancellors disclosed the proposed electricity fee, opposition from students, parents, and other university community members has mounted.
They argued that the substantial hike would place an undue financial burden on students and families already grappling with economic challenges, potentially impacting students’ access to education.
In his reaction to the development, the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) national president, Lucky Emonefe, said none of his members would pay the bill if the universities adopted it.
NANS said even though it had not received an official memo on the matter, it would not accept any such increase in the electricity charge.
The coordinator of NANS Zone C, Comrade Anzaku Shedrack, who spoke with our correspondent, urged the federal government to remove tertiary institutions from Band A as it was affecting their operations.
He said, “I have not received any memo to that effect, but I want to say that our stand remains that we reject any form of increments in our school fees, especially at this trying time. We understand the country is passing through a trying phase, and students are not finding it easy.
“This is no justification for any increment at this period when students are going through a lot. Parents are struggling to survive and so many other students are on the verge of dropping out of school because of the high cost of school fees in Nigeria.
“We as a student union have been involved in various discussions, especially with our institutions’ administrations and management, because we are the voice of Nigerian students and will continue to be that voice. We had discussions with them, and we told them that as university administration, they should source for other means of generating revenue in their institutions to supplement whatever the government gives them to maintain their institutions.
“When you go to some institutions, you find out that they provide essential services, whereby they can generate revenues. It is not only when they increase school fees that they can generate money, and we cautiously talked to these managements to warn them several times not to raise school fees because of cost. We have been trying our best to ensure that the government is also involved in this electricity tariff issue. As part of our obligation, we also meet different power sectors to find a solution to this.
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