No
fewer than 75,000 Nigerian students are currently studying in three Ghanaian
universities incurring a total of N160billion expenditure annually, the
Chairman, Committee of Pro-Chancellors of Nigerian Universities, Dr Wale
Babalakin, has said.
The
expenditure is less than the Federal Government’s total budget for all its
universities last year, Babalakin, Pro-Chancellor, University of
Maiduguri added.
He
spoke in Ilorin, the Kwara State capital, at the weekend at an award night
organised by the University of Ilorin Alumni Association in honour of Governor
AbdulFatah Ahmed and three other alumni of the institution.
Also
honoured were the outgoing Vice Chancellor of UNILORIN, Prof Ishaq Oloyede;
Vice Chancellor of the Kwara State University (KWASU), Malete, Prof
Abdulrasheed Na’Allah; and the Managing Director/ Chief Executive Officer of
UTC Nigeria Ltd, Mrs. Folusho Olaniyan.
Babalakin,
who was the chairman of the occasion said: “University education is at a
crossroad in Nigeria. Only in 1973, four Nigerian universities were rated among
the best 20 in Africa. Today, none of them is among the best 30, while none is
among the best 1000 in the world.
“University
education is a collective effort. University education can only grow properly
with government and active support of the populace. Leaving it for government
alone is not fair. Everybody should contribute to ensure education that grows
in Nigeria.
“Since
2009, when the power to appoint VC had been delegated to the university, it has
been done relatively peaceful. Most people are surprised that there has not
been any rancour in the appointment of VCs. This is the first step towards
university autonomy. There are still so many areas that are still not
autonomous. It is when we become totally autonomous that all the universities
will have the necessary energy to develop at their own pace.
“The
university should be allowed to generate money internally for development purposes.
If we generate substantial money within the university and those monies are
spent with great discretion, you will be alarmed at how far it will go and the
catalytic effect of development.
“Nigeria
government should put measure in place to attract foreign students to Nigerian
universities. In the 70s and 80s, so many went abroad for their ‘A’ level and
came back to the Nigerian universities.”
“Before the just concluded Olympic games everyone of us was happy that Nigeria
was participating, but I told some of my colleagues that Nigeria would have a
dismal outing. This is because we don’t have outstanding primary, secondary and
tertiary institution competition.”
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