The Chairman of the House of Representatives Committee on University Education, Abubakar Hassan Fulata, has denied allegations that the lawmakers demanded ₦480 Million in bribes to approve the allocation for some federal universities and other tertiary institutions in the 2025 budget.
He said those spreading such reports are only trying to undermine the efforts of the lawmakers.
In defending the lawmakers, Fulata explained that the budget defence, which took place at the House temporary chamber, was open to the general public and media as there was no executive session or closed-door meeting.
Naija News reports a report by an online news medium had claimed some lawmakers in the National Assembly set up a bribery scheme targeting federal universities and other tertiary institutions in the country.
According to the report, lawmakers are using intimidation and threats to force the heads of universities to pay ₦8 million each to approve their allocations in the 2025 budget.
The extortion scheme allegedly involves senators and members of the House of Representatives.
The lawmakers, operating through the Senate Committee on Tertiary Education and TETFund and the House Committee on University Education, are said to have demanded money from universities to approve their budgets.
However, Fulata dismissed the claims in their entirety.
He argued that instead, the lawmakers have been at the forefront of making live more bearable for the universities by making recommendations on their behalves.
He added that lawmakers in the Green Chamber carried out oversight visits to all federal universities under his committee’s supervision except Federal University Gusau, Zamfara State, whose vice-chancellor blocked the legislators from accessing the school and also failed to provide documents regarding the budget performance of previous years (2022 to 2024) and 2025 budget proposal.
He said due to the advocacy of the legislators against the inclusion of tertiary institutions of learning in the Integrated Payroll and Personnel Information System (IPPIS), President Bola Tinubu agreed to remove universities and other tertiary institutions from IPPIS because the IPPIS is “anti-intellectual, anti-academics and retrogressive.”
According to him, as a result of the absence of councils for universities and other tertiary institutions nearly a year after the inauguration of the current government, the House of Representatives considered and adopted a motion urging Mr President to constitute the councils which was done almost immediately by the President.
He explained that the House Committee on University Education had in 2024 carried out oversight visit to all federal universities under his committee’s supervision except Federal University Gusau, Zamfara State whose vice chancellor did not only block the legislators from accessing the school but also failed to provide documents regarding budget performance of previous years (2022 to 2024) and 2025 budget proposal. He said the oversight visit was aimed at getting clearer pictures of the progress and challenges of the universities.
According, to him, the management of almost all the universities visited complained seriously against the hike in electricity tariff.
“Some of the universities were paying about N100 million as electricity tariff every month and we thought this cannot help our tertiary institutions. I moved a motion on this issue and the House came up with the resolution urging for downward review of electricity tariff or removal of these institutions from Band A group of electricity tariff.
“Mr President again listened to our appeal and approved 50 percent subsidy on electricity tariff for universities, polytechnics, colleges of education and all tertiary institutions and hospitals,” Fulata said.
He said the committee’s budget defence meeting for the National Universities Commission and vice chancellors of universities took place openly on January 15th, 2025, immediately after the Armed Forces Remembrance Day celebration.