Democratic Socialist Movement

For Struggle, Solidarity and Socialism in Nigeria

By - DSM

N5000/N10,000 late registration fee by EKSU management is criminal!

We condemn the plan to increase school fees by the University!

We call for immediate scrapping of late registration fees. No to school fees increment!

The Education Rights Campaign (ERC) condemns the imposition of N5000/N10,000 late registration fees on students of Ekiti State University (EKSU) by the university management. Imposing late registration fees on students who are yet to pay their school fees is a criminal attempt to add insult to the injury of these students. Moreover, it defies logic to ask students who are already unable to meet up with the exorbitant school fees payment to pay more money. We demand that the late registration fees should be scrapped immediately.

We support the protest of students against this unjust exploitation as well as against the plan by the university management to outrageously increase school fees. We frown on the decision of the university management to shut down the school instead of conceding to the demands of the students. This is nothing but an attempt to clamp down on the agitations of students.

The management of EKSU is notoriously known for its exploitative acts over the years. Despite the fact that many students are finding it very difficult to pay the current fees structure, the university management is still perfecting a plan to hike the fees outrageously. This increment will reportedly see students from medical sciences pay as high as over N700,000 as new intakes and over N500,000 for faculty of law new intakes while other faculties’ fees are also ridiculously hiked.

In rejecting this anti-poor action, we call on education workers’ unions and pro-masses’ organisations to join students in the struggle to ensure that late registration fee is scrapped and planned increase in school fees is defeated. We also charge students in general to fight for adequate funding of the education sector by the Ekiti State government that has left the school to ruin, and also nationwide by other state governments and the federal government. This calls for a national action of students by a coalition of students’ unions or NANS. However, it is also important to demand that finance and running of schools are democratically controlled by elected representatives of students and workers as a measure against corrupt practice including misappropriation of funds.

Ogunjimi Isaac

Deputy National Coordinator

Adaramoye Michael Lenin

National Mobilization Officer

E-mail: [email protected]