The management of the School of Nursing at the Nnamdi Azikiwe University Teaching Hospital, Nnewi, Anambra State, has pledged to engage the governing board and student leaders to address concerns over the recent increase in tuition fees.
The assurance followed a protest yesterday by students of the institution who decried what they described as an astronomical hike in their fees from N90,000 to N580,000, reports The PUNCH.
The protesting students marched within the school premises carrying placards and chanting solidarity songs, including, “We no go gree, reduce the school fees, we no go gree,” to express their displeasure over the increase.
The fee increment reportedly followed an internal memo issued on January 23 by O.I. Ezejiofor, the Chairman of the Board and Chief Medical Advisory Committee of the NAUTH College of Nursing, announcing an upward review of tuition to facilitate improvements in the institution.
Speaking with journalists yesterday, the Chief Medical Director of NAUTH, Prof. Joseph Ugboaja, said he had been informed about the protest and promised that the management would meet with the relevant stakeholders to resolve the issue.
“I will return to the institution and we will sit with members of the board who proposed the new tuition and also with the student union leadership to sort things out,” Ugboaja said.
“As for the school fees, yes, there was an increment. We just had a new board and it decided to review the tuition to enable the institution provide the best for the students. They proposed N580,000 to us and we approved it, but there is still room to take another look at it and harmonise things.”
He added that the institution had maintained relatively low tuition over the years and that the review was aimed at sustaining standards.
“Our fees have been very cheap and even with the increment, we are still among the lowest in the South-East. Someone who was paying N90,000 would naturally protest the increase, but it is to ensure we maintain standards,” he said.
Ugboaja also addressed complaints about accommodation costs, explaining that the school does not own hostels.
“Most of the hostels around are privately owned, and the arrangements are between the students and the owners,” he added.
Meanwhile, the institution’s Public Relations Officer, Chinyere Onwuka, said the leadership of the students’ union had distanced itself from the protest.
“They wrote to us and I have the letter here. I don’t know those who organised or led the protest,” Onwuka said.
She maintained that the reviewed fees remained moderate, noting that the amount covered feeding and transportation for students during their clinical postings, including trips to Enugu.
According to her, a comparison with other schools of nursing in the South-East showed that NAUTH’s fees were still relatively low.
“Some institutions charge as much as N800,000 for old students, and that is even without feeding,” she added.
