PARENTS and guardians of students of Kaduna State University (KASU) are to sign undertakings that their children and wards will be of good behaviour and will not participate in a protest “against the increment in tuition fees or any contrary activities of the University’s rules and regulation [sic].”
An unsigned and unfilled copy of the undertaking, which has gone viral on the social media reads in part: “Respectfully, I am…………………Parent/Guardian of……………my Son/Daughter/Ward a…………………level student admitted in 20…../20….. Academic Session in your esteemed institution. I hereby write to assure you that my Son/Daughter/Ward will be of good character/conduct and will obey all the rules and regulations of his/her Department and Faculty as well as the university at large.
“I also pledge that my Son/Daughter/Ward should be expelled without warning if he/she engages in any demonstration /protest against the increment in tuition fees or any contrary activities of the University’s rules and regulation [sic].”
The university, on its Facebook page, denied the document, saying it is ‘fake.’
It will be recalled that students of the university have been protesting against the sharp increase in their tuition fees on the direct instruction of Governor Nasir el-Rufai. The students are demanding for the reversal arguing that majority of them will be forced to withdraw for their inability to afford the fees which were raised well over 500 per cent.
The state government has hiked the tuition fees to between N150,000 and N400,000 from N24,000 and N36,000 respectively. Following the faceoff, the registrar, Mr Samuel Mancho, designed the undertaking, compelling parents and guardians to sign that their children and wards would abide by all the rules and regulations of the university.
Prior to the increment, non-indigene students (those that are not from the state) and depending on the course of study, paid between N31,000 and 36,000.
At the moment, as published on the university’s website, students from the state under the current academic session are to pay N150,000 for Art and Humanities and N171, 000 for Sciences. Non-indigenes, classified as “others”, will pay N221,000.
For social sciences, students from Kaduna will pay N170, 000; while students from other states will pay N200,000. Also, Kaduna students admitted to study medicine will pay N300,000 while those from other states will pay N400,000.
