BREAKING: Peace at last: UNIBEN VC concedes to students, reverses N20,000 late registration fee

UNIBEN students celebrating the removal of late registration fee
The Vice Chancellor of University of Benin, Professor Lilian Salami, had on Wednesday, September 15, conceded to reverse amongst others, the fee imposed by the school authority on students following an aggressive protest by the students of the institution since Tuesday till Wednesday, September 15.
Recall that that the Vice Chancellor had earlier announced the immediate closure of the University following the protest that heavily rocked the school on Tuesday by the students who blocked the ever-busy Benin-Lagos Expressway and the Ekheuan Road over a N20,000 late registration fee imposed by the school authority, adding that the aggrieved students described the decision as unpleasant particularly amidst the “unfavorable economic situation” in the country.
In a viral video circulating on social media, students were seen in their hundreds at the school’s main gate, with a voice saying, “UNIBEN students, we are under pressure, Aunty Lilian, please pity us.
“Students of University of Benin are very displeased with the act of their Vice Chancellor,” one of the protesters said.
According to a source, from an initial N14,000 tuition, the school management increased school fees for the 2017/2018 academic session to N41,400.
The university management led by the Vice-Chancellor, Salami, increased tuition from N41,400 to N45,000 at the resumption of the ongoing academic session.
Freshers are asked to pay N90,000, a sum considered to be outrageous by the students.
“These insensitive hikes are consistent despite the fact that students have several other fees the institution imposes on them. Some of these compulsory fees include: faculty dues, departmental dues, course registration and many more.
“The management of the institution claims it does not officially sell handouts, its lecturers coerce students to pay for same,” the source revealed.
The additional N20,000 imposed by the school management for the late payment of tuition is what sparked the protest.
Reacting, the Vice Chancellor made the following concessions in her address to the students on Wednesday:
- Total removal of the N20,000 late registration fee.
- Setting plans in place to remove the Dean of student affairs and Public Relations Officer (PRO) noting that the PRO was quoted to have said education is not for the poor, if you don’t have money to pay for school fees, then you shouldn’t be here, you should go and learn a trade.
- No student will be victimized
- Students can remain in hostel, water and light to be restored.