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The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has continued its opposition to the Student Loan Bill recently signed into law by President Bola Tinubu.
According to Prof. Emmanuel Osodeke, ASUU President, rather than increasing enrollment and reducing dropout rates as envisaged by the government, the loan scheme will send millions of students out of school.
President Tinubu had on Monday, June 12, 2023, signed the bill allowing students in all the higher institutions access loans to fund their education and start paying back two years after completing the National Youth Service Corps Scheme (NYSC).
The decision was in fulfilment of one of his campaign promises, and many Nigerians, including critics of his government, have commended him for matching his words with action.
The bill, sponsored by the former Speaker of the House Representatives and Chief of Staff to Tinubu, Femi Gbajabiamila, is interest-free.
ASUU expresses reservations over student loan bill
But, ASUU, in an initial reaction by its President on Tuesday, expressed scepticism over the bill, which it described as discriminatory.
Speaking with Daily Trust on Wednesday, Osodeke doubled down on its criticism of the bill, predicting that the law might have an unintended effect on millions of prospective students who rely on tuition-free higher institutions of learning to acquire knowledge.
The ASUU president said, “A country where more than 133 million are living below the poverty line and you want to introduce tuition fees? It will be counterproductive.
“Every Nigerian should know what is going to happen next and there may likely be another bill waiting for signature that will introduce tuition fees. If the bill indicated that the loan is to pay tuition fees and there are no tuition fees in Nigerian universities, then what is your next approach?”
Osodeke also reiterated that there's nothing novel about the bill and that the union rejected the idea when it was proposed during the administration of former President Muhammadu Buhari.
He also disclosed that the union was yet to access the version of the bill signed by Tinubu to enable it to do a proper appraisal.
“We have said long ago, in 2017, to President Buhari when they came up with the issue of tuition fees, that every student will pay N1 million and we said you cannot put that in our agreement and you cannot use that to negotiate with us and with the nature of the country we have today, there is no way that will work.
“What will happen is that the majority of students whose parents cannot afford it will pull out of school in anger and you know what that means, they will fight society back. But let us get the correct information first before knowing the next steps,” he added.