Students of Northwest University, Kano, have expressed outrage over what they described as an “unjust and insensitive” hike in registration fees, despite the 50 per cent discount earlier announced by the Kano State Government for indigenes.
Many students, particularly those in their final year, said the sudden increase caught them off guard and may hinder their academic progression due to financial hardship.
In 2023, the Kano State Government, under Governor Abba Yusuf, announced a 50 per cent reduction in tuition for indigenes across all state-owned tertiary institutions, including Northwest University, Kano.
The move was widely hailed as a significant relief for struggling parents and students.
However, the recent fee hike, reportedly raising the amount from N19,000 to N53,350, according to students who printed their invoices, has reversed those gains, leaving students both confused and agitated.
A cross-section of the university’s students interviewed in Kano shared their frustrations, calling on both the school management and the state government to intervene swiftly.
“This is pure wickedness,” said Badamasi Aliyu, a 300-level student in the Department of Education.
He added, “How can a state-owned university that promised us a 50 per cent discount suddenly increase the fees? We are children of the masses. Our parents are petty traders.
Where do they expect us to get this kind of money?”
Similarly, Hafeezu Abubakar, a fellow 300-level student in the Department of Biological Sciences, criticised the timing and lack of communication surrounding the increment.
“We resumed only to be told that the registration fees have gone up. No prior notice, no explanation. We were just expected to pay,” he said, visibly upset.
Abubakar also said the hike contradicted the government’s previous promise of affordable education.
“It’s as if they’re deliberately frustrating us. We can’t continue like this. If nothing is done, many of us will have no choice but to withdraw,” he said.
Multiple attempts to reach the university’s Public Relations Officer, Malam Abubakar, were unsuccessful, as his phone lines were switched off, and messages sent to him remained unanswered at the time of filing this report.
However, in a follow-up, President of the National Association of Kano State Students, Northwest University, Khaleed Hassan Hudu, confirmed that student leaders had just come from a meeting with the vice-chancellor but said the issue remained unresolved.
According to him, while the management had earlier hinted at a planned increase in fees, they failed to disclose the exact amount of the increment in advance, leaving students unprepared for the steep hike.
He said the vice-chancellor attributed the decision to the university’s financial challenges, including the inability to cover essential operational expenses such as printing of examination papers, student ID cards, and procurement of necessary equipment.
“We are appealing to the government to take into account the current economic hardship. Many of our classmates are in a state of dilemma,”.
When asked whether students intended to protest the hike, he replied: “No, we are law-abiding. We won’t engage in any illegal action. We have great faith in our governor and are confident that this increment will be reversed.”