Kogi varsity defends fee hike, cites NELFUND for 4,032 students

The vice-chancellor of Prince Abubakar Audu University (PAAU), Anyigba, Prof. Salisu Usman, says 4,032 students have been approved for loans under the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND). Usman said this while defending the university’s fee increase at an investigative hearing organised by the Kogi House of Assembly on Tuesday in Lokoja. The hearing followed a petition alleging arbitrary increases in fees by the managements of PAAU and Kogi State Polytechnic.

The VC said the recent fee review was not arbitrary but part of a unified fee structure approved by the Kogi Government for its three state-owned universities. Usman said the review followed a government directive issued in 2024 to harmonise fees across state-owned tertiary institutions. He said that PAAU’s charges were comparatively lower than those of similar institutions in neighbouring states.

According to him, much of the controversy centred on medical programmes such as Medicine and Surgery (MBBS), Nursing and Medical Laboratory Science, which require huge investments, particularly during clinical training. The VC commended his predecessor, Prof. Marietu Tenuche, for reintroducing the medical programmes, which collapsed in 2012. He also lauded former Gov.

Yahaya Bello for supporting stranded medical students and commended Gov. Ahmed Ododo for sustaining medical education in the state. Usman said that 4,032 students had been approved for NELFUND loans totalling N536.7 million to pay school fees, while another 600 applications were pending. He urged students to take advantage of the scheme, which also provided a N20,000 monthly upkeep allowance, with repayment commencing two years after graduation upon securing gainful employment.

Earlier, the Commissioner for Education, Mr Wemi Jones, said the government followed due process in reviewing fees, considering economic realities and the interests of parents and students. Jones said the directive was issued to PAAU in 2024 but implemented inconsistently across departments, prompting full implementation to ensure compliance. He dismissed claims that Kogi State Polytechnic increased its fees, saying its rector had instead reduced accommodation charges by N5,000.

The Chairman, House Committee on Education, Mr Idris Maikudi, said the Assembly mandated relevant committees to investigate the petition and compare the institutions’ charges with those of neighbouring states. Mr Bode Ogunmola, representing Ogori-Magongo, called for sustained government support for medical education, lamenting that the only general hospital in his constituency had operated for years without a doctor due to personnel shortages.

Mr Jibril Abu, representing Ajaokuta Constituency, expressed concern over the absence of the petitioners at the hearing. He commended President Bola Tinubu for introducing NELFUND to expand access to higher education. (NAN)