N100bn tertiary education fund missing As 74 varsities wallow in abject neglect

Education Minister Ruqayyatu Rufai

A fresh crisis is brewing between the Federal Government as represented by the Federal Ministry of Education and the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) over a Federal Government promised N100 billion intervention fund. The fund was part of a N400 billion pledged by the administration of President Goodluck Jonathan to be used for the onward funding of the nation's university system.

It would be recalled that last year, February 02, ASUU called off its eight-week strike, which spanned, December 2011 to January 2012.

Explaining the reason for this gesture, ASUU said it decided to call off the strike in the interest of the revitalization of Nigerian universities and the need to improve the quality of teaching and research in Nigerian universities and called on the government to fulfill its obligation, especially in the area of funding.

On calling off the strike in Abuja, the then ASUU President, Prof. Ukachukwu A. Awuzie, reminded the Federal Government that ASUU would return to the renegotiation table in June, to review the agreement reached with government which include progressive increase of annual budgetary allocation to Nigerians  Education to 26 per cent between 2009/2020, transfer of Federal Government landed property to the universities and the reinstatement of prematurely dissolved governing councils of universities.

ASUU, while commending the role played by its members as well as students, parents and members of the National Assembly for what it described as their cooperation, support and understanding during the strike, announced that in the area of funding and revitalization of universities, government has decided to release the sum of N100 billion and promised to build this up to a yearly sum of N400 billion in the next three years.

ASSU, also, announced other areas of agreement reached with government to include the payment of the Earned Academic Allowance, amendment of the pension/retirement age of academics on the professionals cadre from 65 to 70 years, which the president would ascent to before the end of February, establishment of a pension fund administrator, restatement of the university governing council on before February. Incidentally,   investigation has uncovered the behind the scenes manoeuvres that characterized the two months, during which academic activities were suspended in all public universities in Nigeria following this industrial dispute over the implementation of the 2009 Agreement between the Federal government and ASUU.

  got hold of the fact that concerted efforts were made to resolve the outstanding issues and consequently restore normalcy in the universities by the Minister of Education, Prof. Ruqayyatub Ahmed Rufa'I; the Minister of State, Barr. Ezenwa Nyesom Wike and later, the Minister of Labour and Productivity, Mr. Emeka Wogu.

Also, the National Assembly intervened through the Senate and House of Representatives Committees on Education by holding direct talks with ASUU and subsequently passing the necessary legislation on aspects of the 2009 Agreement requiring legal backing.

As discussions became protracted, the Presidency waded into the matter. The Secretary of State to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Senator Anyim Pius Anyim, led the Federal Government team.

Sources close to the negotiation informed that issues that required executive action were either resolved or decisive steps taken towards their resolution. However realizing that the revatilisation of the Nigerian university system has been at the core of all previous disputes with ASUU, government decided, for the first time, to be proactive in addressing the challenges in our institutions before they become issues of contention, believing that Nigerian universities need to be turned around to meet the challenges of national development and international competitiveness.

To achieve this objective, the Federal Government set up the Committee on Needs Assessment of Nigerian Universities (CNANU) to appraise specific and general needs of public universities nationwide. Sources disclosed that out of patriotic consideration and in spite of the principle of powers, the National Assembly accepted to serve on a Committee set up by the Executive. And that perhaps for the first time, ASUU also accepted to serve on a 'government Committee'.

Committee's Brief

The Committee, inaugurated by the Minister of Education on Tuesday 21, February 2012, was mandated to carry out comprehensive assessment of Nigeria's public universities with a view of providing actionable blueprint that will help in restoring the glory of the institutions as well as repositioning them to meet the high-level manpower needs of the country, both in quantity, quality and effectiveness.

Members of the Committee included Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, the Executive Secretary, Tertiary Education Trust Fund as the Chairman; Senator Abubakar Atiku Bagudu, representative, Senate Committee on Education; Hon. Jerry Alagbaso, representative, House of Representatives Committee on Education; Mr. Raymond Brown, representative Office of the SGF; Dr. Jamila Shu'ara, representative, Federal Ministry of Education; Adeyinka O. Jones, representative, Federal Ministry of Finance; Emmanuel Ina Uchola, representative, Federal Ministry of Trade and Investment; Mrs. Victoria Omolade Oluyole, representative, National Planning Commission; late Arc. (Mrs.) Chinwe Obi replaced by Mr. Ayo Bankole, representative, National University Commission; Prof. Ukachukwu A. Awuzie, immediate past President, ASUU; and Mr. Femi O. Melfa, Tertiary Education Trust Fund as Secretary.

Insiders confirmed that the Committee's Needs Assessment exercise involves an inventory of all physical facilities for teaching and learning (lecture theartres, laboratories, workshops, studios); learning resources (laboratory/ workshop equipment, Information Communication Technology (ICT) facilities, classroom furniture); staffing profile of the institutions (teaching and non-teaching staff, their number, qualifications, ranks, mix, reputation); students enrollment; hostel accommodation; affiliations and satellite campuses of the institutions as well as municipal services (roads, water, electricity, security, health, recreational facilities, environment).

The Committee was equally asked to assess staff-student ratios, staff and students population in relation to available facilities so as to identify the areas of pressure and how resources can be channelled in order to address critical needs.

Ministry sources disclosed that the Committee to achieve its terms of reference generated a Data Gathering Template and circulated it throughout all public institutions to fill and complete.

Upon receipt of the completed templates, verification teams were constituted to physically visit the institutions with a view to confirming key components of data submitted by the universities.

A Committee member stated that the adopted two-pronged approach was to ensure that a comprehensive and accurate report can be generated on the conditions of the public universities in Nigeria.

He added that the report would enable the Federal and State Governments to gain better insight into the infrastructural facilities and learning resources and to plan subsequent intervention in the right direction for the growth and development of the institutions.

The report is believed to be a consolidated report generated through the analysis of the data submitted by various institutions as well as reports of Verification Teams.

Missing N100billion

Although the findings and the report have already been produced,   investigation gathered that the valuable document is presently gathering dust in the Presidency, since July last year.

A copy of the report made available to   showed a decrepit state of infrastructure in the country's institutions of learning. The necessary facilities such as lecture theartres, laboratories, classrooms and hostels are either not adequate or are outright not available. “The state of learning resources in our universities is disturbing. Apart from their gross inadequacy, most of the learning resources in our laboratories and workshops are obsolete while lecture theartres are either partially functional or completely out-of-use.”

The committee discovered that there is an average of four abandoned projects per university; most of which are projects that are funded from capital allocations and are mainly students' accommodation and lecture theartres.

On the Teaching Staff strength of the universities, the Committee found out that a substantial number of the nation's academic staff are either not qualified academics or are products of inbreeding. This means that a good percentage of the country's universities teaching staff lack Doctorate (Ph.D.) academic qualification.

The Committee also discovered large disparity between the academics and the student population; noting that the student population surpasses that of the teachers. The average ration it puts at one teacher to 40 students, a figure at great variance with the International Best Practice and Nigeria's National Benchmark Minimum Standard. The Committee again noted that these universities lack international academics and that the indigenous academics lack adequate international exposure.

To turn around Nigeria's universities, the Committee believes that there must be attitudinal change by all stakeholders: Government, university mangers, university scholars, support staff, unions, parents and even the wider community.

  also found out that the initial fund of N100 billion which was part of the settlement and already released by the Federal Government is nowhere to be found.

Although informed sources stated that the sum has been traced to two banks within the country, it is very hard to determine in whose names or under which institutions the missing sum is lodged.

Part of the information made available to the newspaper suggested that the sharing of the sum was placed on hold in view of the fact that another Committee was raised by the Presidency to appraise the report of the Prof Mahmood Yakubu-led Committee, it was not clear whether this new Committee ever meet to do any tangible work.

What insiders are now saying is that the N100 billion is not really missing, that rather, some unscrupulous individuals are simply reaping commission benefits off it form the banks where the sum is been kept.

Already, ASUU has threatened action, suggesting that the money is not really available, but sources at the SGF Office stated otherwise, saying that the money is available.