Abia State Governor, Dr Okezie Ikpeazu, has countered the decision of the management of Abia State University led by Prof. Maxwell Ogbulu to increase the tuition fee of the school by over 350 per cent.
Invoice given some fresh students had shown that undergraduates in some departments had their fees hiked from N122,000 Naira to N500,000.
However, worried by the development, Ikpeazu, who is a Visitor to ABSU quickly directed the management to immediately cancel the increase in school fees announced on Monday.
The governor, through his Speaking on behalf of the governor, his Chief Press Secretary, Onyebuchi Ememanka, said that the increase which is by over 350 per cent was unacceptable to the State Government, especially given the current economic realities in the country.
“The Governor while acknowledging that it is becoming increasingly challenging for the University to play its role under the current fiscal regime, however, added that the University management must understand clearly that it must ensure that children of the poor in the State are given the opportunity to access tertiary education,” he said.
Ikpeazu further directed the University management to engage with all relevant stakeholders in the university community and have robust discussions before contemplating any geometric hike in school fees.
He assured the people that the state government would continue to support the institution with subventions and equally assured all students, parents and guardians of the university that their interests would consistently be protected by the State Government.
