Open Message to Ogun State Governor: The Way Out of O.O.U School Fees Crisis

Started by nReporter, May 27, 2013, 01:38 PM

nReporter

This is an open message written by a concerned citizen to the Governor of Ogun State, Senator Ibikunle Amosun about the school fees crisis rocking the only state-owned university, Olabisi Onabanjo University (OOU). Read the concerns of the original writer and share your thought...

Your Excellency,

O.O.U School Fees Crisis: The Way Out

I'm constraint to write you once again as a Patriotic citizen of Ogun State who is interested in a peaceful and serene political atmosphere in the State on an issue I considered issue of urgent State importance; the issue of Student unrest and management of school fees in our tertiary Institutions with Olabisi Onabanjo University at the centre for now.

THE ISSUE

The attention of the Public and the international community had been drawn to the Student crisis in Olabisi Onabanjo University, Ago Iwoye where your Excellency is the Visitor. The main cause of the imbroglio where two students have reportedly lost their lives is to say the least condemnable and obviously not in the best interest of your Administration.

We have read on this medium that officials of NANS are already mobilising for another round of demonstration and protest in the new week, the outcome of which no one again can tell. My appeal to you is to use your good offices and power as the Visitor to the Institution to resolve the issue amicably without further rancor and acrimony. The Government and the Institution Management as locus parentis to the Students cannot afford to continue with the use of force to solve such a minor issue most of the time .

The Issue at stake and the grievances of the students is that some students will lose academic sessions or studentship if the University Management goes ahead to implement its policy of no fee no Studentship. As a Professional University Administrator, the Management is saying the obvious in view of the fact that Registration is the only condition for Studentship in University system. There is no gain saying too in the fact that payment of school fees as at when due is the prima facie condition for registration without which there is no studentship. Your Excellency, of course this is purely from the Gown's point of views and obviously the rules of the system and practice worldwide.

Whereas, there is also the town side to the toiling of the coin. One will not lose sight of the prevailing economic hardship in the society and the simple fact that we are all part of the inflationary pressured society that is daily making the people agitating and restive. Only a pessimist will not admit the fact that things are hard for common men hence the need for rules to be made with human face in order to accommodate the realities on ground. What is necessary therefore is for the OOU Management to marry both the Gown and Town's approach to solving the perennial problem of fees regime in the Institution. Some weeks ago it was TASCE and now it is OOU which goes to suggest that there are issues begging for Government attention on issues of school fees accross Institutions in the State

TASUED EXPERIENCE

Having said this I want to put it on records that TASUED had similar problem in its kitty sometime but was settled through the option I want to canvass as capable of solving OOU issue at hand. We noticed in the Student Affairs that many NYSC call up letters are not being claimed yearly by students who by rules must have graduated before being mobilized for National Youth Service. The situation became more worrisome when we discovered that many of these students were exploiting the options of cutting corners to produce fake results to be able to claim their call up letters and proceed on NYSC since they could not pay the accumulated fees debts (even after their names had been published in the authentic pass list by the Academic Office).

In our investigations we discovered three categories of students as follows:

1. Some students who though have graduated still owing the University necessary fees thus could not proceed to do final clearance to obtain their results.

2. Some Students who ought to have lost academic Sessions due to non payment of fees and non completion of registration and by the University Senate regulation have lost their studentship

3. Those Students who having failed to pay their fees at the expiration of Senate deadlines could no longer have access to the University Portal and whose case will soon become hopeless as in categories 1 and 2 above The Student Affairs was asked to collate these facts to the attention of the University management.

The Vice Chancellor having been properly briefed by the student Affairs personally met with the Students concerned to hear their stories and thereafter sought the approval of the Senate to grant Students in the three categories amnesty to enable them make progress with their academic activities. Our concern really being that a student being asked to withdraw from studies on account of non payment of fees could be counterproductive to the system and the larger society as Universities are established to contribute to high level human capital development and not to recruit high level miscreants as a result of inability to graduate due to inability to pay fees.

Over a thousand students came to register; their cases were discussed at the management meeting while the Senate approved amnesty for the Student to regularize their Studentship through compliance with the directives of the Senate.

As I speak to you Sir, majority of the Students involved had since seized the opportunity of the amnesty to do the needful and have graduated from the University without tears. Many of those who had abandoned their results for years had come back to claim them for further productive activities in life while the University did not lose a kobo in the process.

The Prayers

Your Excellency, I have been able to explain here how TASUED was able to manage similar situation as we are having in OOU today through granting of amnesty to the three categories of Students void of tension, crises and disruption of public peace.

I am therefore writing to plead that as the Visitor to the University, you graciously grant the affected students amnesty through the University Council and Senate to enable them complete their studies without loosing days in the University . In this case a new deadline and procedure for payment should be worked out while student are allowed to do offline pre registration to enable the Management take census of who are directly affected (as may be approved by the University Senate)

It is in the best interest of the Government that access to higher education should not based on ability to pay. A situation whereby those who could not pay are pre maturely sent out School will only add to the growing number of miscreants and hardened criminals in a State where Education is considered as our major industry

Since the issue of fees management is becoming a recurring issues in our Institutions , it underscores the need by the government to address it centrally before it become a thorn in the flesh of the administration and state educational development. To this effect, a stakeholder summit of the future funding of higher education in the state need to be urgently considered by the government. Thanks for the anticipated positive action to save the souls of this great leaders of tomorrow.

Dapo Oke via Facebook