A professor of Social History at the Lagos State University (LASU), Ojo, Ezekiel Adeoti, has urged vice chancellors of public universities in the country to be more prudent in their spending.
He also implored them to explore alternative sources of funding outside of the government to enable them to effectively carry out their tripartite mandates of teaching, research and community services.
Adeoti gave the advice while delivering the 95th inaugural lecture series of LASU recently.
He spoke on the topic ‘Interrogating Multi-dimensional Crises in the Management and Funding of University Education in Nigeria: A historian’s Perspective.’
The don went down the memory lane, declaring that though crises in public universities in Nigeria are multidimensional, inadequate funding had been the major problem causing most of the crises, especially the ones between the various workers’ unions and government.
He gave reference to the protracted crisis between the Academic Staff Union of Universities(ASUU) and Federal Government over some issues such as the Integrated Payroll and Personnel Information System (IPPIS), decayed infrastructure, poor remuneration and welfare, dearth of lecturers, “Japa” Syndrome, proliferation of state-owned universities, among others.
He said it was disheartening, that ASUU’s industrial actions could be up to a total of 1, 637 days, which amounted to four years, five months in 26 years starting from 1999 to date with Muhammadu Buhari’s administration witnessing the highest number which was 637 days and followed by the Olusegun Obasanjo’s administration, which was 548 days.
He pointed out that most of these issues usually cause delays which grossly affect the growth and development of the university education.
Nevertheless, Adeoti listed some of the alternative areas which universities could explore to raise funds and manage the system better to include tuition, running remedial programmes, endowment funds, alumni associations, award of honorary degrees, collaboration with private and government agencies, among others.
According to him, it is only adequate financing of public university education through various sources that can serve as an antidote to crises in the universities and nation-building sustainability.
In her brief remark, the vice chancellor of LASU, Professor Ibiyemi Olatunji- Bello, who was represented by the deputy vice chancellor (Administration), Prof Adenike Boyo, commended the inaugural lecturer and described him as an erudite scholar and historian.
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