ActionAid to FG: Keep King’s College public, reject concession
By Gabriel Ewepu
ABUJA — Following the controversy surrounding the proposed concession of King’s College, Lagos, ActionAid Nigeria, AAN, has called on the Federal Government to retain the school as a public institution.
Speaking with Vanguard, Country Director of AAN, Dr Andrew Mamedu, said the organisation was concerned about the controversy, particularly against the backdrop of Nigeria’s education crisis.
Mamedu said public education must remain public in purpose and not merely in name.
“Many of today’s leaders benefited from free or heavily subsidised education. We cannot benefit from that ladder and then pull it away from the children coming behind us,” he said.
He noted that the Federal Government had earlier estimated that about 15 million Nigerian children were out of school, arguing that government’s priority should be expanding affordable public education rather than creating uncertainty over access.
“When millions of children are already outside the classroom because of poverty, insecurity and other barriers, our priority should be expanding affordable public education, not creating uncertainty around access to it,” he said.
Mamedu acknowledged the Federal Government’s explanation that King’s College had not been sold, that government would retain ownership and that there was currently no plan to extend the arrangement to other Federal Unity Colleges.
He, however, said the concern went beyond ownership.
“The real question is whether public education will remain affordable, accessible and genuinely public in purpose,” he said.
According to him, education, healthcare, water and other essential social services are rights and should not be structured in ways that could price poor and vulnerable Nigerians out.
“Education is one of the strongest pathways out of poverty. If quality public education becomes increasingly dependent on private financing and management, children from low-income families may be the first to lose access,” he said.
The AAN director also expressed concern over reports that some parents had kept their children away from school in protest, warning that children should not bear the consequences of disagreements between government and stakeholders.
He urged the Federal Government to use the ongoing review to engage parents, workers and other stakeholders transparently.
Mamedu also called for the agreement to be made public, with clear provisions on future fees and guarantees of access for children from poor families.
Meanwhile, staff of Federal Unity Colleges across the country reportedly defied the Federal Government’s directive to resume academic activities on Monday, sustaining their indefinite strike over the proposed concession of King’s College, Lagos.
Parents also kept their children away from the schools as the industrial action continued.
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