The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has raised a red flag against alleged plan to abolish the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund).

The union described the alleged plan as dangerous for the country’s tertiary education system.

Its Calabar Zone of the union said this after its zonal conference yesterday in Abakaliki, the Ebonyi State capital. The zone comprises seven public universities in Ebonyi, Cross River, Akwa Ibom, and Abia states. They include Abia State University (ABSU), Akwa Ibom State University (AKSU), Ebonyi State University (EBSU), Alex Ekwueme Federal University, Ndufu Alike Ikwo (AE-FUNAI), University of Calabar (UNICAL), University of Cross River State (UNICROSS), and University of Uyo (UNIUYO).

In a statement by the union’s Zonal Coordinator Happiness Uduk, ASUU condemned the alleged plan to abrogate what it called the “live wire” of tertiary institutions in Nigeria by approving a zero allocation to TETFund as from Year 2030.

The zonal coordinator described TETFund as the major source of funding in public tertiary institutions, adding that it had been pivotal to the improvement and maintenance of standards in higher educational institutions. 

He said it would amount to being unpatriotic if the proposed tax regime in which education tax, called Development Levy meant for bankrolling TETFund’s programmes owing to death and decay of educational infrastructures, was allowed to be ceded to the newly established Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND). 

“ASUU notes with serious concern Section 59(3) of the Nigeria Tax Bill (NTB) 2024, which specifically states that only 50% of the Development Levy would be made available to TETFund in 2025 and 2026 while NITDA, NISENI, and NELFUND would share the remaining percentage,” Uduk said. 

The ASUU zonal coordinator urged governments, stakeholders and well-meaning Nigerians to reject the proposed abrogation of TETFund, describing the move as an ill will with dire consequences.