By Doris Ferdinand
The house of Representatives on Wednesday condemned high acceptance charges on students by tertiary institutions.
In a motion moved by Hon. Julius O. Ihonvbere, APC-Edo State, the lawmaker lamented the irregularities in the fees noting that it is discriminatory.
He expressed worry as this has made many student to forfeit their education due to inability to afford such fees.
“Amid the rising frustrations over the exorbitant fees, indigent families of new students that are forced to pay the acceptance fees are bemoaning the unusual astronomical increases against the backdrop of the fact that Federal Universities are supposedly tuition-free;
“The acceptance fees are discriminatory, as they vary from one University to the other which clearly shows that they have become mere internal revenue-generating mechanisms thus constituting an impediment to the smooth process of entry into Universities;
“While some of the institutions are charging minimal fees, others are charging astronomically whereas, others do not charge anything, while most institutions do not charge acceptance fee against tuition fees, thus raising the question as to whether the institutions were not established under the same law;
“If the situation is unchecked, acceptance fees may surreptitiously become the school fee, thus affecting the number of students that may gain entry into higher institutions in Nigeria; Worried that the dire consequences of exorbitant acceptance fees in our Public Universities have led to many indigent students losing their admission as a result of their inability to afford the fees;
The lawmaker further called on the Federal government “To increase the funding of Public Universities to moderate the excessive drive for Internally Generated Revenue at the expense of popular access to public education in Nigeria.”
The House thereafter referred the motion to the appropriate committee for further legislative action.
