Nigeria: Student Movement ANSA Commences Nationwide Anti-acceptance Fee Campaign

Note of the Editorial Board: Below is an article published by “Sahara Reporters”, a progressive African online medium involved in investigative journalism. It reports about the latest campaign of the Alliance of Nigerian Students against Neo-liberal Attacks (ANSA) protesting against fees charged by education institutions in Nigeria. ANSA is a mass student movement in which comrades of the sympathizing section of the RCIT play a leading role.

For more information see:

Interview: The Revolutionary Student Movement in Nigeria. Interview with Obafemi Sodunola, a leader of the “Alliance of Nigerian Students Against Neoliberal Attacks” (ANSA) as well as a leader of the sympathizing section of the RCIT in Nigeria, September 2018, https://www.thecommunists.net/rcit/nigeria-interview-with-ansa-leader/

Nigeria: “Stalinism is an Obstacle in Building an Authentic Marxist and Internationalist Organization!” On the Background of the Recent Split in the Pacesetters Movement and the Plans of the RCIT Supporters in Nigeria. Interview with Sanyaolu Juwon, former Organizing Secretary of the Pacesetters Movement and long-time National Coordinator of the Student Movement ‘Alliance of Nigerian Students Against Neoliberal Attacks’, 4 September 2018, https://www.thecommunists.net/rcit/interview-with-sanyaolu-juwon-rcit-nigeria/

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Student Group ANSA Commences Nationwide Anti-acceptance Fee Campaign

The organisation specifically cited what it referred to as “frivolous increment in acceptance fees at Olabisi Onabanjo University Ago-Iwoye and the Federal College of Education (Technical), Akoka, respectively”.

by SaharaReporters, New York Sep 26, 2018 http://saharareporters.com/2018/09/26/student-group-ansa-commences-nationwide-anti-acceptance-fee-campaign

The Alliance of Nigerian Students against Neo-liberal Attacks (ANSA) has declared the acceptance fees charged by institutions across the country as illegal and commenced a campaign against it.

This was contained in a communiqué issued at the end of its National Executive Council meeting held on Tuesday, September 25, 2018 and signed by Oseriemen Patrick Benjamin (Sankara), National Secretary; Sodunola Obafemi, National P.R.O. and Adeyeye 'Femi, National Coordinator.

According to the communique, ANSA will also look into the issue of “political victimisation of lecturers at Lagos State University (LASU), as well as the case of Comrade Tosin Emerald Grace, said to have been exiled from academic activities at the ObafemiAwolowo University for a “fictitious offence”.

It read: “The Alliance of Nigerian Students Against Neo-liberal Attacks (ANSA) again seizes this revolutionary moment in the history of Nigeria to keep students, workers and the members of public abreast of its plans for massive fights and campaigns against all anti-student, anti-worker and anti-poor policies of the Nigerian government.

“We are reasserting our resolve to fight neo-liberal policies of University administrations in various higher institutions, stemming particularly from the poorest funding of the education sector with the ridiculously terrible seven per cent budgetary allocation to over 2,000 schools, resulting to highest level of deterioration, degradation and vulnerability.

“It is also important to alert members of the public that ANSA strongly condemns the illegal collection of acceptance fees from students after admissions. We find it very irrational for Nigerian students who after seeking admission and meeting the requirements, have to pay heavily to 'accept' the admission when offered.

“In this vein, we seriously reject and condemn in strong terms the frivolous increment in acceptance fees at Olabisi Onabanjo University Ago-Iwoye and the Federal College of Education (Technical), Akoka, respectively.

“The issue of political victimisation of lecturers at Lagos State University (LASU) came up in the meeting and the members agreed to look into the issue throughly.