By Marie-Therese Nanlong

Jos—DESPITE public outcry and condemnation of recent hike in school fees by University of Jos from N27, 000 to N45, 000, the management of the institution weekend insisted there was no going back on the implementation of the new fees once the new session begins next month.

While students, parents and guardians had faulted and rejected the hike at a time when most families could barely feed and address other immediate needs, the management said it was not moved by public reactions saying its action was based on the implementation of the Federal Government approved harmonized charges for all undergraduate students in federal universities in Nigeria.

In a statement by the institution’s Registrar/Secretary to Council/Senate, Mr.  Monday Danjem, the management among others, said: “The University Management feels compelled to put the issues in clear perspective so that the public is not misled. The University of Jos Management was in receipt of a letter from the Executive Secretary, National Universities Commission (NUC) dated 22nd January, 2015 conveying the newly approved schedule of harmonized school charges to Senate/governing councils of all federal universities for immediate implementation.”

The directive contained in the letter followed a recommendation made by a Committee constituted by the Honourable Minister of Education comprising the NUC Executive Secretary; Chairman, Committee of Pro-Chancellors; Chairman, Committee of Vice-Chancellors and Vice-Chancellor, Bayero University, Kano that was mandated to review and harmonize the schedule of miscellaneous charges for Undergraduate Students in all Federal Universities.

“However, even though Management secured the approval for the implementation of the new school charges structure in the University, it was later agreed that there should be a phased implementation of the policy due to the prevailing situation in the University at that time.

Since the implementation of that resolution, it is apparent that the economic situation of the country has taken a downward turn raising significantly the cost of maintenance per student. The University of Jos does not charge Tuition Fees as is being erroneously speculated. What Students are required to pay are school charges that are approved by Government and captured in the budget. Every item in the School charge structure is tied to a specific cost for the services provided e.g. Hostel Maintenance, Students Health Insurance, Library, ICT Bandwidth and Network Maintenance, I.D. Card among several others. This is a verifiable fact that is clearly listed in the University’s school charges schedule.”