Renowned human rights lawyer, Femi Falana has strongly condemned the recent hike in school fees by the Federal and Lagos State governments, labeling it as illegal.
The federal government’s decision to increase fees for Unity Schools from N45,000 to N100,000 per term, a whopping 120% increase, has sparked widespread concern.
Similarly, the Lagos State Government’s announcement of a new fee of N100,000 for state-owned boarding schools, up from N35,000, has added fuel to the fire.
Falana argues that this increase violates the Child’s Rights Law, which guarantees free and compulsory education from primary to junior secondary school.
He also highlighted the absurdity of the situation, where a worker earning the minimum wage of N70,000 cannot afford to sponsor even one child’s education in these schools.
Falana explained that with the new fees exceeding the minimum wage, it’s clear that the government’s decision will disproportionately affect low-income families.
The human rights lawyer vowed to challenge this decision in court, emphasizing that the government’s actions infringe upon the rights of children to accessible education.
He said: “The federal government has increased the fee payable in all Unity schools from N45,000 to N100,000 per term. Thus, the fee payable per annum is N300,000 per student.
“Similarly, the Lagos State Government has fixed fees payable in all secondary schools at N100,000 per term or N300,000 per annum by every student.
“At N70,000 minimum wage, the salary of a worker per term of four months is N28,000. The implication is that a worker can no longer sponsor even one child either in the unity school or any secondary school in Lagos State.
“However, under the Child’s Rights Act and Lagos State Child’s Rights Law, every child is entitled to free and compulsory education from primary to junior secondary school. To that extent, the imposition of N100,000 fees on students in junior secondary schools in Unity Schools and Secondary schools in Lagos is illegal.
“Given the clear provisions of the Child’s Rights Laws applicable in all the states of the Federation and the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, the illegal imposition of prohibitive fees on junior secondary school students will be challenged in the appropriate High Court.”
This move has generated significant debate, with many Nigerians expressing frustration and disappointment with the government’s priorities.
