The suggested payment of N10,000 each session by each parent to help the Federal Government make more money accessible for universities has been rejected by the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU).
In order to address the ongoing ASUU strike; the National Parent-Teacher Association of Nigeria proposed the tax and requested a meeting with the Federal Government.
“We are proposing a sum of N10, 000 per parent every session that will be directly paid to the universities. That will be our own contribution apart from other statutory payments in making more funds available to the universities,” NAPTAN’s Public Relations Officer, Dr. Ademola Ekundayo, disclosed this during an interview on Tuesday.
But reacting to the proposed levy on Thursday, August 25, 2022; ASUU National President, Prof. Emmanuel Osodeke, said parents should intervene by joining the body in mounting pressure on the apex government.
Osodeke made the call while speaking during an interview on Arise Television on Thursday, August 25.
“I think what this association should be doing is to tell the government to perform its function. They should put pressure on the government to use Nigerians’ money to fund education as it is done in other countries.
“We can’t be calling ourselves the giant of Africa and we are the worst in education. You see students from Nigeria going to Ghana, Benin Republic, Togo, and other small countries to study but nobody from these countries is coming to Nigeria to study.
“If we are giant, we must perform as giant. Education is number one. My advice is that they should add to the pressure of ASUU to ensure that the government prioritises education and perform its statutory duty of ensuring that Nigerian students have access to education which is their right. That will be more important than this 10,000 (Ten thousand).
“So they should add to the pressure coming from ASUU to ensure that the government prioritise education. That is more important than the N10,000”.
