OAU Students Protest Tuition Fee Hike
Students of the Obafemi Awolowo University, Osun State, have staged a protest over the hike in tuition fees.
The students, who stormed the varsity premises started the protest early Tuesday morning carrying placards reading “When I dey pay 20k, I dey borrow money. Where you wan make I 90k? #FeeMustFall”, “I cannot afford to drop out. #FeeMustFall”, “My Mama dey sell Fufu, my papa dey ride Okada. Where you won make I see 90k? #FeeMustFall.”
The Secretary General of the varsity Students’ Union, Akinboni Opeyemi, confirmed this, stating that the student populace does not agree with the current tuition fee.
The students’ union on September 26 urged students of the institution to suspend payment of tuition fees, as a result of the slash in fee hike by the management of the institution.
The management of OAU had earlier reviewed the school fees payable by the students of the university.
A statement issued by the Public Relations Officer of the university, Abiodun Olanrewaju, read that the management slashed the fees after a meeting held with the students.
However, Olanrewaju added that the Students’ Union leaders were adamant, insisting that the fees should be reduced by 50 percent.
The Vice-Chancellor, Professor Adebayo Simeon Bamire, however, said that the charges initially announced have been reduced as follows:
“For the students in Humanities, the initial sundry charges of N89, 200 for returning students have been reduced to N76,000 while for the new students in the Humanities, the initial fees of N151,200 have been reduced to N131,000.
“For those in the Sciences and Technology, the initial charges of N101,200, for returning students is now N86,000 while the new students in the same Faculties will now pay N141,000 instead of the initial N163,200.
“In the same vein, the returning students in the Pharmacy and College of Health Sciences will now pay N109,000, instead of N128,200. The new students in the same Faculties will now pay N164,000 instead of the initial charges of N190,000,” the statement read.
