Wale Jagun
The Lagos State House of Assembly has waded in the controversy generated by the hike in boarding fees in the state’s model colleges.
The boarding fees was reviewed from N35,000 to N100,000 for the 2024/2025 academic session, which began on September 15, 2024, which sparked protests across the state.
The Speaker, Rt. Hon. Mudashiru Obasa, who addressed the protesting parents at the Assembly assured that the lawmakers would intervene.
At the plenary session on Monday, the Speaker explained that his intervention became necessary after hearing the protest chants at the Assembly’s entrance.
He directed the Chairman of the House Committee on Education, Hon. Mosunmola Sangodara, to engage all relevant stakeholders and report back within a week.
In her response, Hon. Sangodara informed the House that the committee had already initiated discussions with the Ministry of Education and other stakeholders. She further stated that it was agreed that parents could continue paying the old fee of N35,000 pending a further review.
Hon. Gbolahan Yishawu (Eti-Osa II) noted that the fee increase was driven mainly by rising costs of student feeding but urged the government to explore ways to ease the financial burden on parents.
Hon. Bonu Solomon (Badagry I), also contributing said that some students that are unable to pay the new fee were reportedly denied access to purchase food within school premises, further complicating the situation.
The House now awaits the report from the Education Committee to determine the next steps.
