President Bola Tinubu on Wednesday assured Nigerian students of his commitment to addressing critical issues in education, especially the hike in school fees in public learning institutions nationwide.
Tinubu gave this assurance when he received the leadership of the National Association of Nigerian Students at the Aso Rock Villa, Abuja, in front of the audience.
NANS President, Lucky Emonefe, who revealed details of the closed-door talks with the President to State House Correspondents, explained, “So we’re conveying the message back to our students that Mr. President will look into the challenges they are facing in various higher institutions and those higher institutions that are increasing school fees will put an end to it.
“So it is the challenge that Nigerian students are facing, we believe that the school fees hike will be a thing of the past.”
Amidst concerns over the delay in the student loan scheme, the President announced that the long-anticipated programme will commence within the next two weeks.
“On the issue of the student loan, the little delay was the expansion. Mr. President expanded it for the inclusion of some vocational training, which is highly commendable.
“In one or two weeks from now, the launching of the student loan will begin; that is, as for the student loan, all steps have been put in place to commence it immediately, and Mr President will launch that. He has equally promised to include students in the process.
“On the issue of the hardship that we’re facing, Mr President didn’t give a specific time, but he said things will turn around soon and students will start feeling it. I think that was the response,” Omonefe explained.
The student team also met with the President’s Chief of Staff, Femi Gbajabiamila, who assured the association of the government’s readiness to avert any looming industrial action by members of the Academic Staff Union of Universities.
“There may be another looming ASUU strike, and we are trying to address that, we are looking at issues that concern ASUU, the impending strike and I believe we should be able to avert that as you have said earlier, we can always do our best to avert strikes such as this, luckily we have a President who is more than anybody determined that the days of strike are over and left behind. We are hoping to be able to avert the strikes,” said Gbajabiamila at the separate meeting.
On the purpose of Wednesday’s visit, Omonefe said, “We came, first, to thank him for the… student loan scheme. He equally released funds for intervention, UBEC and TETFund, given to students because that is the development of infrastructure. So we came in to thank Mr. President.
“We also came to the table the yearnings and aspirations of Nigerian students before Mr President, including issues of hike in school fees and various other challenges, high cost of living for Nigerian students, and what they are going through.
“He listened to us and promised us that he is going to look into that. And that he’s going to include more youths in his government, that he wants the student loan to work so that those who don’t have access to education can have access to it. And we know things will turn around for the better, soonest.”
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