ASUU: Why NELFUND cannot replace TETFUND
The Lagos zone of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has stressed importance of the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFUND) to tertiary institutions.
Speaking at a press conference on Friday at the University of Lagos (UNILAG), Chairman of ASUU Lagos Zone, Prof.Adelaja Odukoya, said to contemplate abrogating TETFUND and replace it with National Education Loan Fund (NELFUND) under the Tax Bill 2024 is “unpatriotic.”
He noted that TETFUND focuses on institutional support by funding infrastructure, research, and staff development in public tertiary institutions, while NELFUND provides direct financial assistance to individual students through loans.
Adekoya added that TETFUND’s beneficiaries are public tertiary institutions, whereas NELFund targets individual students seeking financial aid for their education.
The don however, said an attempt to scrap the agency would amount to violating the TETFUND Act of 2011, which guarantees equal and sustainable funding for public tertiary institutions.
He stressed that it would also violate citizens’ constitutional rights which emphasises the state’s obligation to offer education as a social right, adding that eliminating the TETFUND and substituting it with a loan scheme does not meet this duty.
He said: “The common societal benefits of education, including lower crime rates, improved public health, and greater civic involvement, are undermined when the publicly supported model (TETFUND) is replaced with an individualized one NELFUND).
“Academic staff would not be able to receive research grants, conference funding, or training without TETFUND, which would lower their morale and professional growth. Inadequate facilities and learning materials would have a detrimental effect on instruction and learning, adding to the workload of faculty and lowering the caliber of graduates.
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“The attempt to disband the TETFUND to fund NELFund is rife with difficulties and self-serving from an educational, political, legal, and socio-cultural standpoint. It could jeopardize Nigeria’s long-term educational and developmental objectives, exacerbate socioeconomic disparities, and weaken the state tertiary institutions.”
“The TETFUND’s termination would result in deteriorating buildings, out-of-date instructional materials, and a drop in academic standards. The TETFund has played a significant role in providing funding for studies that tackle regional and worldwide issues. Since individual student loans do not give priority to research and development, redirecting funds to the NELFund runs the risk of stifling academic innovation and research output.” THE NATION
