President Bola Tinubu on Monday, explained why he signed the students loan bill into law.
Giving his reason for the accent, he said that “I was pleased, today, to have signed into law, the Access to Higher Education Act which provides interest-free loans to deserving students across the country who wish to further their education in tertiary institutions.
“With this Act we shall ensure that every deserving student has access to affordable and quality education, irrespective of their financial background,” he wrote.
In his reaction, the chairperson of the Federal University of Technology, Minna chapter of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), Prof Gbolahan Bolarin has condemned the students loan bill signed into law on Monday by President Bola Tinubu.
The academic don is noted that the law is not feasible as the peculiarities of Nigeria were not considered before signing the bill into law.
According to him the problem with Nigeria and such initiatives is that the leadership wants to replicate what they see in some other countries without giving any consideration to what is obtainable in Nigeria.
He lamented that it may be difficult for students who obtain the loan to pay back due to the high unemployment rate among graduates as well as the abysmal minimum wage.
Prof Bolarin revealed that ASUU stood against the bill from the beginning because the scheme is not feasible nor sustainable and is therefore “dead on arrival.”