by GODFREY AZUBIKE
Students of the Nsukka campus of the University of Nigeria take the battle against plans to increase fees to the doorsteps of their vice chancellor
I pray out of the inner depth of my heart that the incoming vice chancellor of the University of Nigeria, in the person of Professor Bartholomew Okolo, will be able to fit into the same shoes worn by the outgoing vice chancellor.” Those were the words of Sam Egwu, minister of education, on June 7, last year, when he visited the institution a few days before Okolo took over as the new vice chancellor of the University of Nigeria, Nsukka, UNN, from Chinedu Nebo, his predecessor.
Barely seven months after he assumed office as the new vice chancellor of the university, Okolo is now battling with one of the challenges the minister had in mind in his supplication that God should grant the new helmsman of the institution the wisdom to effectively step into his predecessor’s shoes. In the past few weeks, the main campus of the university has been shut down following the destructive riot embarked upon by the students of the institution on January 16. The students claimed that they went on rampage to protest “arbitrary increase in school fees” by the authorities of the university.
The protest, which took place on the main campus of the university in Nsukka, resulted in the destruction of properties of the institution estimated at millions of Naira.
Newswatch gathered that the present crisis at the university would have been avoided if the vice chancellor had managed the situation well. According to sources, Okolo created a communication gap between him and the students by avoiding meetings scheduled between him and representatives of the students when the rumour mill was awash that the university authorities had increased school fees.
The immediate cause of the riot was the increase to N25,000 of acceptance fee charged every new student. Before now, new students of the institution paid N6,000 as acceptance fee. The new fees again which the students were protesting include tuition fees increased from N18,500 to between N100,000 and N120,000, depending on the students’ department. Accommodation fee has also gone up from N9,000 to N30,000 and convocation fee moved from N4,000 to N40,000. The new fees have not yet come into effect.
Kingsley Asogwa, senate president of the Students Union Assembly of the university, told Newswatch that when they heard the rumour of increase in school fees, they made efforts to meet the VC to discuss the matter. He said their efforts were intensified when the new acceptance fee of N25,000 was implemented. When Okolo was informed that the SUG officials would want to see him on Monday, January 11, he agreed but did not keep the appointment. The students did not give up. They were prepared to dialogue with him the following day and they told him so.
Consequently, Francis Umegudosi, the speaker of the students’ assembly, called the VC to reschedule the meeting Tuesday, January 12. The vice chancellor agreed and asked the speaker to text him the time they would be coming for the meeting. He complied. The students went again on January 12, and waited for him from 9 a.m. till 3 p.m. without any sign that he would keep the appointment.
The vice chancellor then asked that the request for them to meet with him be put in writing and signed by the SUG presidents at both the Nsukka and Enugu campuses. “We did so but the letter was not submitted to him because the dean of students’ affairs assured us that we would see the VC on Friday, January 15. On Friday, all the union leaders came. Again the vice chancellor refused to see us. While we were there, the dean, students’ affairs, wanted to address us and we said no, if he wanted to talk on the issue of increase in school fees, we wanted the VC to be present. But if it was any other matter, we could discuss,” Asogwa told Newswatch.
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