Parents and guardians of students of Lagos model colleges have expressed total disappointment in the Lagos State Government for increasing the boarding fee of the students from N35,000 to N100,000 per term.
They described the action as an act of wickedness.
The state government had on Saturday, 14th September, announced an upward review of boarding fees for each student across its model colleges from N35,000 to N100,000 (representing a 286 percent increment ), and this is to be effective from this first term of the new academic session.
The students were supposed to resume originally last Sunday, 7th of September, alongside their peers in other primary and secondary schools in the state, but their resumption date was shifted by one week, making tomorrow, Sunday, 15th of September, their new resumption date.
Model colleges are special secondary schools owned by the state government
and spread across the six educational districts of the state.
They are 16 in all, operating boarding facilities except Vetland Grammar School, Ifako- Ijaiye, which is being run as a day school.
For resumption, it was gathered that majority of the parents had already paid their children’s fee of the old amount and now surprised about the new charges.
Some of the parents, who spoke to Nigerian Tribune on the matter, lamented the development.
They said government is not senstitive to the plights of parents, particularly at this time when costs of living have overshoot the roofs and most homes find it difficult to feed.
They said even though cost of food items have increased in the market, government has no justification to have increased feeding fee of students by about 300 per cent, especially by the same state government that is claiming to be running a free education policy.
They pointed out that it was not only money for feeding that the model colleges are collecting from their children.
Apart from feeding money which every student must pay as part of screening conditions to be allowed into the hostels, each student, according to them, must mandatorily donate to school specified size of insecticides, detergent, broom, tissue papers, mop and mop bowl and so forth.
They told Nigerian Tribune that the state government must have to reverse to the old fee as they cannot afford the new fee.
Speaking on behalf of the parents’ forum of the colleges, the chairman of the group, Mr. Dapo Dawodu, in a message sent to their Whatsaap platform emphasised that the new fee was outrageous and killing.
He explained that there was no way any parent could afford it.
Mr Dawodu noted that parents at the forum level had in February this year designed a “good scheme of Feeding and Welfare Analysis of their children to the Ministry of Basic and Secondary Education, which he said government had not be able to fault till date.
He added, “So, taking another view of the whole educational programme, Lagos State boasts of a free education policy, to which the boarding programme ought not to have been excluded.
“But parents of boarding students seemed to have shown understanding with then past governments, when the cash crunch was heavily against the state so many years ago.
“Now currently, we all know that all tiers of governments are receiving over 350 per cent better funding , occasioned by the removal of fuel subsidy, which same exercise excessively depleted parents spending power by 600 per cent or more.
“It is in the light of the foregoing that we find it very unacceptable for parents to be put through another round of oppression through this mindless increment!
“So, having taken due cognisance of your yearnings, we quite agree that for us parents not to swallow this wicked bait from the government in the face of threats from some principals not to let our children into the boarding houses without the payment of N100k effected, we are left with no option than to ask that parents retain their children/wards at home tomorrow Sunday 15th until the obnoxious decision of the ministry is fully reversed.”
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