The National Association of Nigerian Students NANS has appealed to the governing Council of University of Maiduguri to reverse the outrageous increase of registration charges for both returning and new students.
At a media briefing in Maiduguri, National Vice President of the Association Comrade Sulieman Sarki said the hike would have negative impact on students from the North East region who have been severely affected from the thirteen years insurgency.
According to him NANS has issued a week ultimatum for the management of the institution to rescind its decision or stage a massive protest across the country.
Comrade Sarki remarked that University of Maiduguri had increased the registration fee by one and fifty percent, expressing concern that the outrageous fee could result to huge dropout of students.
“The recent hike in registration charges by some northeastern universities does not only come to us as a surprise but as an affront to the war against insurgency, such that students who are unable to pay the new fee might end up becoming drop out and this will add to the rising number of youth restiveness in the region ” Comrade Sarki lamented.
The Vice President not to proceed on the payment of the new registration charges and await the outcome of NANS strategic action plan as the Association has commenced consultation with management of University of Maiduguri.
He called on stakeholders in the education sector across the country to intervene by prevailing on the governing councils of federal universities universities to rescind their decision.
The Governing Council had on first December 2022 approved the review of registration charges for undergraduate and postgraduate students following rising cost of teaching and learning materials.
Dauda Iliya