The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) Owerri zone, has called on Nigerians, particularly vulnerable students, to voice out against the Federal Government’s proposed policy to abolish the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund) across public institutions in the country.
The call, which was made by the Owerri zonal coordinator of ASUU, Prof Dennis Aribodor, on behalf of the zone during a press conference held in Awka, alleged that the proposed policy is a plot to kill public tertiary education in favour of private schools largely owned by political leaders.
Prof. Aribodor said the Union has urged the Senate President, Sen. Godswill Akpabio, and the Federal House of Representatives Speaker, Rt. Hon. Tajudeen Abbas, to be wary of the potential consequences of abrogating the TETFund.
He said for the last one-and-a-half decades, it has been the backbone of Nigeria’s public tertiary institutions, supporting infrastructural development, postgraduate training, and research capacity-building.
He said the union stands against anything that would lead to the denigration or obliteration of TETFund as it observed with keen interest the on-going debate on the review of the tax system in the country.
Prof. Aribodor further said part of the bill proposed to end funding of the TETFund by the year 2030, and thereafter cede the responsibilities to the newly-established Nigerian Education Loan Fund, (NELFUND).
According to the zonal coordinator, the conference aimed at sensitising and inviting all stakeholders for a patriotic action to save public tertiary education in Nigeria by rejecting the Nigeria Tax Bill 2024, especially as it affects the abolishing of the TETFund.
The distribution ratio of the Fund is 2:1:1 between Universities, Polytechnics and Colleges of Education. TETFund currently provides intervention to 244 public tertiary institutions in Nigeria, which are 96 Universities, 72 Polytechnics and 76 Colleges of Education.
