FG’s Demand Of 40% IGR Spells Doom For Colleges Of Education-COEASU

The Colleges of Education Academics Staff Union has stated that the Federal government’s plan to automatically deduct from the Internally Generated Revenue of tertiary institutions including colleges education, will lead to an increase of fees in the colleges.

A statement signed by the President of COEASU, Dr. Smart Olugbeko stated that if the government goes ahead to implement the policy, parents will bear the consequences and will thereby withdraw their children from schools.

The union lamented that the government only gives the Federal Colleges between an average of N8 million monthly to run the Colleges, adding that the fund was not always made available as and when due, creating serious challenges in running the institutions.

“Following the monetisation policy of 2003, the Government basically stopped paying for outsourced services such as cleaning, grass-cutting, facility maintenance, and security, which are supposed to be government responsibilities.

“Government only gives the Federal Colleges between an average of N8 million monthly to run the Colleges and this fund is not always made available as and when due, creating serious challenges in running the institutions.

“Apart from the fact that this fund is grossly inadequate, Colleges of Education are not elitist schools, and they are not patronized by wards of the high and mighty in the society.

“They are schools for under-privileged but generally patriotic Nigerians who are ready to make the sacrifices to engender a positive change in the education sector.

“How many Nigeria ministers, governors or Chief Executive Officers of government parastatals have their children studying in a College of Education? Thus, our students come from modest backgrounds, but are committed Nigerians who are striving to improve the Nigerian education system and should not be made to pay a huge price for the sacrifices they make to the country,” the statement said.

It noted that the Education Road Map conceptualized by the Ministry of Education is already being threatened by the “ill-conceived and retrogressive” policy of 40% remittance to government.

“This decision represents another strike against teacher education. At a time when the critical stakeholders in the education sector are clamouring for increased funding of teacher education, provision of scholarships and bursaries for education students, the government is initiating a policy to turn Colleges of Education into revenue-generating centers.

“ While various tiers of government provide grants, scholarships, bursaries, and other incentives to students of Medicine, Law or Engineering and support them with stipends for housemanships, internships and industrial attachments, Education students are made to pay for Teaching Practice, and now the Colleges will now be required to remit portions of such payment.

“For instance, if the government collects 40% of charges for Teaching Practice exercise, how will the colleges produce the logbooks, lesson notes, assessment notes and pay for the external moderation of the exercise? If the government collects 40% of charges for hostel maintenance, how will the colleges carry out repairs, supply electricity, water etc to the hostels?

“The minimum amount most Federal Colleges of Education spend on electricity is N10m monthly and governments give a total average sum of N8 Million to run the institutions monthly.

“We expect the government to understand the implications of inability of colleges to provide electricity, pipe-borne water, security, laboratory equipment and other relevant recurrent maintenance costs as this will lead to ineffective teaching and learning, and ultimately, students unrest.

“We believe some people hide somewhere, churning out obnoxious policies to make sure this country does not make progress. If not, how would a government that does not adequately fund tertiary institutions be expecting the same institutions to be transmuted into revenue-generated avenues for it? We believe those who conceived this policy deliberately want to sabotage this government,” the statement said.

The union urged the Federal Government to exclude Colleges of Education from remitting 40% of their IGR to the federal treasury as collections made by the Colleges are not IGR, but charges meant to support specific services that are not being provided by Government.

“We also call on the Federal Government to improve its funding of Colleges of Education as this is a constitutional obligation of social responsibility,” it said.