OAU SU instructs students to suspend payment of school fee

 

  Students' Union representatives at Obafemi Awolowo University in Ile-Ife, Osun State, have advised students to postpone tuition payments.

  This follows the institution's management's announcement on Monday of a fee hike reduction.

According to the Nigeria Tribune, the management of OAU examined the school fees payable by pupils and cut them by 50%. As a result, the Vice Chancellor, Professor Adebayo Simeon BAMIRE, declared on Monday in a statement that the charges originally issued had been decreased as follows:

  "For the students in Humanities, the initial sundry charges of ₦89, 200 for returning students have been reduced to ₦76,000 while for the new students in the Humanities, the initial fees of ₦151,200 have been reduced to ₦131,000."

"The initial charges of 101,200 for returning students in the Sciences and Technology are now 86,000, while new students in the same Faculties will pay 141,000 instead of the initial 163,200." In the same line, the returning students in the Pharmacy and College of Health Sciences would now pay ₦109,000, instead of ₦128,200. The new students in the same Faculties will now pay ₦164,000 instead of the initial rates of ₦190,000. ”

The call was made by the Students' Union President, Abass Ojo, and Secretary General, Akinboni Opeyemi, in a joint statement signed on Tuesday. While praising the OAU administration for its efforts to make compromises and reduce expenses, the student body revealed that no agreement was reached with the school administration over the increase of school fees.

  Meanwhile, the union stated that "the leadership of the union recognizes the supremacy of congressional resolutions and, on this basis, has not been authorized to agree to any other figure besides the 50% reduction as agreed at the congress" in explaining why there was no agreement with the school management regarding the increase in school fees.

  According to the statement, the union's leadership will meet with the relevant committee formed by the congress and would also bring the conversations with management before the congress for open deliberation by students.

  "On this note, we hereby urge students of our noble union to suspend any payment activities until a final and favorable agreement has been reached," the union's leadership concluded.