09/01/2026
PRESS RELEASE
_NANS SOUTH EAST ZONE F CONDEMNS OUTRAGEOUS AND UNILATERAL FEE HIKE AT UNIVERSITY OF NIGERIA, NSUKKA; ISSUES 7-DAY ULTIMATUM FOR TOTAL REVERSAL_
January 9, 2026
The National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) South East Zone F, the constitutional mother body charged with advocating for and protecting the legal rights of over 12 million students in universities, polytechnics, and colleges of education across the South East, has received with utmost dismay and unequivocally condemns the recent over 100% increment in school fees at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka (UNN).
Our findings reveal an egregious and unsustainable burden placed on students and their families. Newly admitted students are now being charged an acceptance fee of Fifty Thousand Naira (N50,000), with a retroactive balance demanded from those who had earlier paid. Furthermore, tuition fees have been skyrocketed from approximately One Hundred and Twenty-Two Thousand Naira (N122,000) to Two Hundred and Forty-Three Thousand Nine Hundred Naira (N243,900) for tuition alone, excluding accommodation, upkeep, and other essential costs.
This draconian increment is a direct assault on the right to education without hindrance and a severe threat to the social security and welfare of the student community, which NANS is constitutionally mandated to defend. It creates an indefensible economic barrier that will undoubtedly exclude countless brilliant but indigent students from the South East and beyond from accessing quality education.
Our Position and Process:
As a responsible and strategic organization, we did not rush to the streets. Since becoming aware of this development in December, we embarked on a thorough process of consultation, fact-finding, and interface with relevant authorities. Notably, we raised this critical issue during the recent Expanded National Executive Council (ENEC) meeting in Abuja, which was a joint public hearing with the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) and the Presidential Committee on Fiscal Policy and Tax Reform.
At that gathering, the Federal Government, through Mr. Taiwo Oyedele, Chairman of the Presidential Committee, provided explicit clarifications that the new national tax reform law was not designed to and would not lead to arbitrary tuition fee hikes in tertiary institutions. This assurance was pivotal in NANS' national decision to call off a proposed nationwide protest, trusting that students' interests were protected.
The action of the University of Nigeria, Nsukka administration, therefore, stands in stark contradiction to this federal assurance and is an independent act of insensitivity.
Our Demands:
Based on our consultations and in defense of the students we represent, NANS South East Zone F hereby issues the following unequivocal demands:
1. The Immediate and Total Reversal of the recent fee increments. Both the acceptance fee and tuition fees must be returned to their previous status quo ante.
2. Enhanced Management-Student Community Engagement: The university administration must establish transparent and inclusive dialogue mechanisms. Decisions pertaining to student welfare and finances must no longer be made unilaterally.
3. A Commitment to Improved Student Welfare on the UNN and UNEC campuses, addressing long-standing issues of infrastructure, security, and learning conditions.
Ultimatum:
We hereby issue a 7-DAY ULTIMATUM to the Governing Council and Management of the University of Nigeria, Nsukka, to meet these demands in full. If, after the expiration of this 7-day period on the 16th of January the needful is not done, the university administration should prepare to face the greatest mass action it has ever witnessed.
We are resolved to mobilize every legitimate means at our disposal, including a total shutdown of academic and administrative activities, until justice is served and our demands are met to the letter.
NANS South East Zone F remains the vanguard for student rights, academic freedom, and accessible education. We will not stand idle while the future of an entire generation is mortgaged.
Consequently, all students and prospective students of the University of Nigeria are hereby directed to halt the payment of any fee whatsoever pending the resolution of this impasse.
Freedom cometh only by struggle.
Signed:
Comrade Emmanuel Ikechukwu Obi
Coordinator, NANS South East Zone F
Comrade Ogba Lawrence
Secretary General, NANS South East Zone F
Cc:
The Vice-Chancellor, University of Nigeria, Nsukka
The Governing Council, University of Nigeria, Nsukka
The Nigerian Police Force, Enugu State Command
The Department of State Services (DSS), Enugu State
The Minister of Education, Federal Ministry of Education
The Executive Secretary, National Universities Commission (NUC)
The National President, National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS)
Office of the SSA to the President on Students Engagement
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