Students of Lagos State University (LASU) have rejected the reduction, yesterday by the state government, of the hiked school fees from between 34 and 60 per cent.

President, Student Union Government (SUG), LASU, Mr. Nurudeen Yussuff, dismissed the gesture, saying it is a “joke”.

Yusuf in an interview with The Guardian insisted that the Governor Babatunde Fashola administration is just playing games. According to him, “When the fees were increased in 2011, they mandated the governing council to look into the issue. There was a report, why are they not resurrecting it?”

Yussuf stressed that anything below N45,000 and N50,000 will not be acceptable to the students, even as he urged the government to “stop playing politics” over the issue. The fees had been astronomically increased from N25,000 to between N250,000 and N350,000.

Reading a 17-point resolution of the ad-hoc committee meeting as approved by the State Executive Council yesterday, the Special Adviser on Education, Fatai Olukoga, said the government has agreed a reduction of the tuition fees ranging from 34 to 60 per cent across the different faculties and courses.

Olukoga revealed the decision of the state government while addressing State House Correspondents alongside the Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Lateef Ibirogba; the Special Adviser on Information, Lateef Raji and Special Adviser to the Governor on Media, Mr. Hakeem Bello.

The reduction is coming after a series of protests by students and lecturers, as well as lingering crisis that had rocked the institution in recent times, largely owing to increase in tuition fees in 2011.

•Photo shows LASU students protesting outside the Lagos Government House recently.

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