Undeterred by the seeming hardline posture of the OAU management in reversing to the old tuition fee regime, the students, numbering over 7,000, on Wednesday stormed major streets of Ile-Ife and visited the palace of Ooni, seeking the intervention of the traditional ruler in resolving the imbroglio over the new tuition fees.
The development, which paralysed social and economic activities in the ancient city, led to traffic gridlock and trading activities in markets were halted before the students marched to the palace of Ooni to register their displeasure.
Oba Sijuwade, who spoke through the Adimula of Ifewara, Oba Hezekiah Adeniyi-Owolola, promised to prevail on the managment of the OAU to reverse its decision on the new tuition fees, stressing that there was need to support and encourage any measure that could enhance peace and communal harmony in Osun State.
It will be recalled that the students had, on Tuesday, embarked on protest against the hike in their tuition, blocking all the major roads in the town including the Ife/Ibadan express road.
The president-elect of the students’ union of the university, Ibikunle Isaac, who led the students on the protest, contended that the students would continue with the protest until the university management reversed to the old tuition fees completely.
Reacting to the students’ protest over the new fees, the management of OAU, on Wednesday argued that the newly introduced tuition fees were moderate and considerate.
In a press statement signed by the Public Relations Officer (PRO) of the institution, Mr Abiodun Olanrewaju, OAU stated that “we deem it necessary to inform the general public, particularly the parents and guardians of our students that the authorities of the Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, has been most compassionate in taking all factors that would enhance the teaching of sound practical academic knowledge into consideration before arriving at the present moderate adjustment of our charges.
“It remains incontestible that OAU, rated the best university in Nigeria for the third time running by the Spain-based Webometric Ranking International had, before now, been charging what some people regarded as ridiculous and unrealistic fees, despite maintenance of solid academic standard which OAU is noted for all over the world.
“It is, therefore, pertinent to state categorically the fees being paid by our students in relation to their courses and faculties. For instance, the total amount each of the students paid per session in the Faculties of Administration, Arts, Education, Law and Social Sciences had been N5,300; their counterparts in Sciences paid N7,800; those in Agriculture, Technology, Environmental Design and Management paid N10,300, while those in Basic Medical Sciences, Clinical Sciences, Dentistry and Pharmacy paid N12,800. Aside the fact that more than 93 per cent of them use hot plates, boiling rings and pressing irons which consume electricity, the accommodation fee had been N2,590 per session.
“From the foregoing, it is now clear that the present socio-economic situation in Nigeria has made it totally impossible for us to sustain being the best and the cheapest in Africa. Factors like the high cost of education, dwindling subvention from the Federal Government by over 50 per cent, astronomical inflation which has eaten deep into our meagre resources and electricity bills are responsible for the present adjustment of fees,” the statement added.
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