The Vice Chancellor of Joseph Ayo Babalola University (JABU), Professor Olasebikan Fakolujo, has appealed to the Federal Government not to exempt students of private tertiary institutions from the Nigeria Education Loan Fund scheme (NELFUND)
Prof. Olasebikan, who stated this during the press conference to herald the 15th Convocation ceremony of the school in Ikeji Arakeji, argued that since the students of private institutions are Nigerians, they should benefit from the schemes and they should not be sidelined and described the exemption of private university students as unfair.
He said students of private tertiary institutions should not be discriminated against because they attend private universities, saying, “NELFUND is a loan meant for Nigerian students, so I believe that anybody in a private university who needs such a loan should be entitled to the lion.”
He explained, “I have about five points to support my argument that Nigerian students in private universities should be able to access the student loan facility.
First of all, Nigerian students in private universities have the same citizenship rights as those in public universities. They must enjoy benefits available to all Nigerian students and should be allowed to apply for these loans.
“Secondly, if you check the Loan Scheme Act, it is titled Nigerian University Student Loan Scheme, not Nigerian Public University Student Loan Scheme. This indicates that private university students are not excluded.
“Thirdly, the loans are intended for students, not the owners of private universities. Even if the government hesitates to provide third-party funding, what about the students? These loans are debts that the students themselves will repay, not the universities.
“Fourthly, private universities are businesses that pay assessed taxes, unlike public universities. These taxes, along with other public revenues, fund the subsidised zero-interest loans. Therefore, it is unjust for private university students to be denied access to these loans.
“Finally, there could be a maximum loan amount set due to the varying tuition fees across universities. For instance, the government could cap the loan at ₦500,000 or ₦1 million, depending on the program.
“On this basis, I strongly believe that the government should revisit this issue and ensure the loan facility is made available to students in both public and private universities.”
Speaking on the forthcoming 15th convocation ceremony scheduled for Friday, 6th December 2024, Olasebikan stated, “Out of the 626 graduands, 50 made first-class honours, representing 8%, 290 in the second-class upper division (46.3%), 215 in the second-class lower division (34.3%), 67 made third class (10.7%), and 4 graduated with a pass degree (0.6%).”
He further announced, “The best-graduating student for the 2023/2024 academic session is Mary Ojone Omachi of the Department of Mass Communication, who graduated with a CGPA of 4.88.”
The Vice-Chancellor also revealed that the university will confer honorary degrees on three eminent Nigerians, including the wife of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, Senator Oluremi Tinubu, the Chairman of the Senate Committee on Legal Matters, Senator Adeniyi Adegbomire, and the CEO of First Trust Mortgage Bank Plc, Mr Korede Adedayo, along with former COREN President Engr. Ebenezer Babaranti Osoba.
According to him, “The conferment of honorary degrees represents our humble recognition of their invaluable contributions towards the progress of JABU.”
Highlighting the convocation events, Olasebikan said, “I formally invite you to be part of the lined-up activities of our convocation program this week, particularly the main ceremony scheduled for Friday, 6th December 2024.”
The events include a reunion service and football match at 2:00 pm on Wednesday, 4th December 2024, while the convocation lecture will be delivered by Prof. Oluwafemi Mimiko of the Department of Political Science, Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, on Thursday, 5th December 2024.
He added, “The convocation ceremony, award of first degrees, presentation of prizes, and award of postgraduate degrees, master’s, and Ph.D. degrees, along with the award of honorary doctorate degrees, will hold on Friday, 6th December 2024.”
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