The Federal Government has been encouraged by the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) to convert the 50 billion naira allocated for the student loan scheme into grants.
ASUU President Emmanuel Osodeke gave the Union’s recommendation as justification for his visit on Channels Television’s Hard Copy on Friday. He attributed it to the difficulty of repaying student loans in a nation where employment prospects are uncertain following graduation.
Remember that on June 12, President Bola Tinubu officially signed the student loan bill into law.
Under the bill, interest-free loans from the Nigerian Education Loan Fund will make it simple for impoverished Nigerians to pursue higher education.
In October, Tinubu declared that the plan will start in January 2024, and the Federal Government would allocate N50 billion for it in the 2024 budget.
The president of ASUU asserted that giving the 50 billion naira away as grants would have had a greater effect and been a more humanitarian investment in Nigerian students’ education.
“Why can’t we, as a nation like Nigeria, convert that N50 billion, if the issue is only N50 billion, into handouts for the children of the extremely poor?
“Let’s help those who can’t afford it, rather than giving them a loan that will burden them long before they graduate and make it unlikely they’ll find employment.”
“Our thoughts are with the Nigerian populace, particularly the impoverished and the village children whose parents make less than N30,000 per month,” he remarked.
“If the amount is only roughly 50 billion, the Nigerian government ought to grant the students that amount instead of giving them a loan that will burden them going forward and might encourage them to start committing crimes to pay for this loan.”
Osodeke questioned the success of the previous attempts to implement a student loan, pointing out that such projects had failed twice previously.
He bemoaned the fact that students in rural areas are economically disadvantaged by the terms of the loan and criticised them.
“In a nation where employment is readily available, many struggle to make ends meet after graduation and end their lives, or commit suicide. Are children in Nigeria certain that they won’t have a job in ten years, therefore they won’t be able to repay the loan?
When discussing the year’s budget, Osodeke questioned the implications of a 50 billion naira loan, posing the question, “To whom will 50 billion go as a loan?”
“Observe the conditions. Which level 12 officer will sign to allow the loan to be accessible to the village’s impoverished children? What was this year’s budgeted amount? — “50 billion…to what number of people will 50 billion be loaned?” he asked.
