…As Uniabuja gets backlash for un-accountability
Supervising Minister of Education, Barr. Ezenwo Nyesom Wike has declared that the Stakeholders Town-hall meeting on Tertiary Education Trust Fund, (TETFund), interventions was an opportunity to showcase the readiness of Federal Government towards promoting accountability and transparency in the application of TETfund resources by tertiary institutions.
This is even as the Minister lamented that the management of University of Abuja has nothing to show for the billions of naira allocated to them for infrastructural development of the institution from the TETFund intervention.
Speaking while declaring open the Stakeholders Town Hall Meeting on TETfund interventions for the North Central zone in Makurdi, the Supervising Minister of Education said that the meeting is aimed at ensuring that the tertiary institutions in the zone work hard to fully use the necessary funds allocated to the respective schools.
The Minister noted that Federal Government through TETFund has been consistent while some universities have been unable to fully use the funds allocated, through no fault of the government.
According to him, whenever the issue of funding for tertiary institutions in the country comes up, it is erroneously believed that the Federal Government is not spending enough money, while the fact on ground proves otherwise as most institutions have funds lying with the TETFund, unaccessed and unutilized
Wike said: “On the average the Federal Government and the TETFund provide not less than 100 billion naira as development grants to its tertiary institutions for the sustenance, expansion of infrastructure and the improvement of staff capacity. It is pertinent to note that TETFund’s intervention is not limited to federal tertiary institutions. It also funds at least 3 state-owned tertiary institutions in every state of the federation.”As the chief accounting officers, the Vice Chancellors, Rectors and Provosts of these institutions are responsible for ensuring prudent, efficient and targeted management of public funds to develop their institutions in such a way that we all can see value for money spent. This, we all assume is what they are doing.”
He added that tertiary education remains one of the largest areas of investment of the Federal Government.
According to him: “Presently, the Federal Government caters for over a hundred tertiary institutions, out of which 80 are under the supervision of the Federal Ministry of Education and 14 located within the north-central geopolitical zone of the country. All these institutions are funded 100 percent by the Federal Government through various provisions, including the regular annual budgetary allocation for capital and recurrent expenditure, and the dedicated intervention funds from TETFund. Besides, most of the institutions also generate substantial revenue from internal sources to augment what comes from the Federal Government.”
Taking on university of Abuja for not having anything to showcase for the money allocated to the institution, the Minister who stopped the representative of the Vice Chancellors, Prof. James Adelabu from speaking further, said that there is no way the institution will come to the meeting without any pictorial evidence for projects allegedly carried out.
Representative of the University of Abuja, Prof. Tahir Gidado said he had no pictorial evidence ready to present to the meeting and has no authority to present anything outside the talk he was giving to the meeting.
It was at this junction that a visibly disappointed Minister told the meeting that, “It is obvious that University of Abuja has nothing to show Nigerians for the money allocated to them from TETFund” and asked the representative to leave the presentation podium.
Also speaking, ASUU National President, Dr Nasir Isa Fagge said that TETFund allocations to universities have helped universities to keep university education affordable.
The ASUU boss promised that the Union will continue to work hard towards ensuring that the mandate of the TETFund is maintained and that the Union will later this year convoke a National Summit on Education.
Chairman of TETFund, Musa Babayo said that TETFund will continue to drive quality tertiary education in the country for national development.
Highpoint of the town hall meeting was the presentation of power point reports on the use of TETFUND allocations by Universities, Polytechnics and Colleges of Education in North Central zone.
The stakeholders town hall meeting attended by civil society organisations, press, administration and staff of tertiary institutions in the North Central Zone, will continue in the other zones of the country.
