By Our Correspondent
The Owerri Zone of Academic Staff Union of Universities, ASUU, has called on the federal government not to hide under the proposed tax reform to kill the Tertiary Education Trust Fund, TETFUND.
The coordinator for the zone, Professor Dennis Aribodor, at a briefing in Awka, observed that TETFUND has helped in no small way to improve infrastructure in public tertiary institutions across country.
ASUU Owerri Zone comprises of Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu University Igbariam, Anambra State; Federal University of Technology Owerri; Imo State University Owerri,, Michael Okpara University of Agriculture Umudike, Abia State; and Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Awka,
According to Aribodor, ASUU Owerri Zone is sensitizing and inviting all stakeholders for a patriotic action to save public tertiary education in Nigeria by rejecting the Nigeria Tax Bill 2024, especially as it affects the abolishing of the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund).
He said,: ” Going back to history, the 1980s were a particularly difficult period for Nigerian universities and other tertiary institutions . The economic downturn, compounded by the implementation of Structural Adjustment Program (SAP) of the Babangida Administration, masterminded by IMF and World Bank, led to cuts in public spending on education. Universities and other tertiary institutions were starved of resources, and lecturers were poorly paid.
“ASUU, recognizing that the future of Nigerian education was at stake, embarked on a series of strikes and negotiations with the government. Their demands were clear: improved funding for universities and education, respect for university autonomy, and provide better welfare for lecturers. During this period,
“ASUU played a key role in the development of what would later become the Education Tax Fund (ETF), now known as TETFund (Tertiary Education Trust Fund). In January 1993, the Education Tax Act No7 of 1993 was promulgated. The Decree imposed a 2% tax on the assessable profits of all companies in Nigeria.
“Some African countries have recently visited to understudy TETFund; Nigeria should be improving on the operations and sustainability of the agency, and not planning to emasculate or abrogate it.
“ASUU Owerri Zone has resolved not to stand by and watch the denigration or obliteration of TETfund which represents the positive testament to our Union’s constructive engagements with Nigeria governments since 1992.
“It is our considered view that abrogating the TETFund Act 2011, by design or default, will be a great disservice not just to education but to Nigeria as a nation.
“As a result, ASUU Owerri Zone is urging all stakeholders in the Nigeria Education project particularly the National Assembly, especially the Senate President and the Speaker of House of Representatives, to do all within their capacity to protect TETFund from being abrogated under the Nigeria Tax Bill, 2024 and save the killing of public tertiary education.”
He described TETFUND as a home grown solution to address issues of funding to rehabilitate the
lost glory of education and confidence in the system.
