ESUT: Parents Slam Hike In School Fees As ‘Inhuman’

Parents and guardians of students of Enugu State University of Technology, ESUT, Enugu, have protested the sudden hike in the development levy charged by the institution.

 Development levy has been jerked up by N50,000, and parents that would be most affected are those whose wards are studying law, pharmacy, medicine and medical laboratory sciences.

It was gathered that with the new arrangement, newly admitted students of the affected departments are to pay sums, ranging from N300, 000. 00 to N250, 000. 00 as development levies, which is an increment of N50, 000. 00 to what they used to pay.

A save-our-soul letter on behalf of some parents by Ndubueze Okonkwo of St. Francis Chambers, copied to THE WHISTLER on Wednesday in Enugu, accused the university authorities of insensitivity to the prevailing economic realities in the country.

The letter states that, “The students of ESUT, particularly the newly admitted ones, are helplessly weeping resulting from the imposition of inhuman and excessively extortionate development fees. Medicine and surgery students pay N300, 000; law, N250, 000; pharmacy, N250, 000; nursing science, N150, 000; and other programmes, N50, 000. 00 respectively as development levies.

“Outside the above levies, each of the students concerned are also expected to pay other staggering fees, such as a school fee of N124, 900. 00; acceptance fee of N26, 100.00, as well as faculty and departmental dues depending on the departments in question. With these fees, for instance, every newly admitted student of law faculty is expected to pay at least N404, 700. 00.”

The letter regretted that the university authorities made the payment of the fees compulsory before registration numbers are issued to the affected students.

Investigations by our correspondent indicate that the law faculty of the university has since its commencement in 2013/2014 till 2018/2019 consistently made its newly admitted students pay N200, 000. 00 as the development levy.

 It was revealed that the faculty admits approximately 150 students per session, making the amount collected since its inception to about N180, 000, 000. 00.

One of the parents, who spoke on condition of anonymity, regretted that the huge sums collected by the faculty could not be justified considering that no new developmental project was visible in the faculty.

 According to him, “During the tenure of Senator Chimaroke Nnamani as governor of Enugu State, an ultra-modern law faculty was erected, which accommodates all the needed lecture halls and offices. The only visible additional structure since the present harsh era of payment of the development fee is the faculty library complex which also houses the faculty’s Moot Court.

“We demand the import of such fees when no visible development is ongoing. We also demand to know why such staggering sums must be paid at once in addition to acceptance fees, school fess, and faculty fees.”