Education stakeholders in the country have chided lawmakers over their consideration of bills for the establishment of additional public universities, polytechnics and colleges of education across the country.
This comes against the backdrop of the consideration of establishment bills by both the Senate and the House of Representatives at various stages in the past one year.
Coming at a time the House of Representatives has set up a committee to review President Bola Tinubu’s directive on the implementation of Steve Oronsanye Report, which recommended the scrapping and merger of some public institutions; creating new public institutions of higher learning comes across as a misplaced priority, considering funding challenges.
Nigeria is currently home to about 270 universities, out of which 149 are privately-owned. The federal and state governments account for 63 and 62 respectively.
These numbers notwithstanding, lawmakers are pushing for the establishment of new federal institutions in their respective senatorial and federal constituencies, if only to convince their constituents that they are working hard to attract “Dividends of democracy” back home.
In the eight year-old administration of President Muhammadu Buhari, members of the Academic Staff Union of Universities went on a strike that paralised academic activities for more than a session.
One year in the saddle, President Tinubu is battling to appease ASUU members, who have recently threatened to down tools except their age-long agreements with the Federal Government are met.
These developments have led to intensified calls for improved funding for existing federal institutions instead of establishing new ones.
Speaking with our correspondent, a senior lecturer in the Department of Mass Communication at the Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, Dr Hashim Suleiman warned against the dire consequence of having too many higher institutions in the country.
In his words, the move to create more is informed by the quest for political capital by the nation’s politicians.
He said, “The establishment of such schools gives our political elites political capital. Perhaps, we would soon have universities for each senatorial district, polytechnics and colleges of education for each House of Representatives electoral unit.
“It is part of the fallout of the state capture by our political elites. What they want is not sustainability, rather political capital against the next election circle or higher political offices.”
ASUU, he stressed, did a lot to fight against the proliferation of universities in the past, adding however that the union got nothing but “Contempt, collective punishment by hunger and assault on our integrity,” in return.
However, a Mass Communication lecturer at the National Open University of Nigeria, Dr Nathan Oguche told our correspondent that more universities can be a blessing to the nation provided adequate funding is provided to administer them.
He said, “Considering the number of public tertiary institutions in Nigeria and the large number of Nigerians who are denied admission every year, I do not believe there can ever be too many public tertiary institutions in the country.
“However, establishing tertiary institutions and funding them are two entirely different matters. The government should be reminded that once a tertiary institution is established, it must be adequately funded to give it life and purpose.
“As a stakeholder in education, I am concerned that in the recent Times Higher Education global ranking, only one Nigerian university is ranked among the top 1000 in the world. Notably, that university is private. Isn’t that disheartening?”
That said, Dr Oguche expressed worry over the little respect accorded to degrees awarded by Nigerian universities in foreign lands.
“It is alarming that Nigerians in some foreign countries are required to pursue additional degrees or certification programs before their qualifications from Nigerian tertiary institutions are recognized.
“This is troubling, and the government should take these issues seriously. The practice of establishing tertiary institutions as a form of political patronage requires urgent attention.”
Sharing the stand of Suleiman, the Director, International Institute of Journalism, Abuja, Dr Emman Shehu in an interview with our correspondent said more public institutions could birth fresh funding challenges for the nation.
“Our lawmakers are generally shallow-minded. This makes it difficult for them to think beyond the usual and in the process, create more problems for the polity.
“No doubt, by failing to address the funding issues of existing public territary institutions, the quality of education is being adversely undermined. The penchant for creating more of these institutions would reach a breaking point , and sooner than later, most of these institutions would be privatised especially as the country’s economy nose dives,” he warned.
On his part, the Chief Executive Officer, Greater Union Academy Group of Schools, Ebelle and Okpekpe, Edo State, Mr Omokhagbor Sixtus said increased demand for tertiary education amid growing population are partly responsible for the growing demand for the establishment of additional tertiary institutions.
He also identified regional development and specialization as possible reasons to justify the quest for more public institutions.
He however urged the Federal Government not to forget that “Allocating resources to existing universities could enhance their quality, research, and infrastructure.”
In his words, “Expanding existing universities might be more cost-effective than building new ones.”
To address the issue, Mr Sixtus called for a merger of two or more existing institutions, “To eliminate redundancies and optimize resources.
He further recommended a public-private partnership to fund and support existing universities and other institutions of higher learning in the country.