High Electricity Cost: VC Warns Against Collapse Of Nigeria’s University System

The Vice Chancellor of Elizade University, Ilara-Mokin, Ondo State, Prof. Kayode Ijadunola, has warned that university system in the country may collapse in 2025 if the high cost of maintaining electricity supply to Nigerian public universities is not addressed by the government.

Ijadunola who hinted that high electricity cost is threatening the survival of the University system in the country, revealed that energy budget in tertiary institutions has tripled in the last few months.

Speaking during a press conference to herald the forthcoming combined 8th and 9th convocation ceremony of the University in Ilara-Mokin on Wednesday, the VC stressed that the transition to the Band A electricity billing system introduced by the DisCos was the greatest challenge currently facing most institutions of higher learning in the country.

Ijadunola who further disclosed that the monthly high electricity costs have become largely unaffordable, informed that electricity supplies to the universities have remained irregular while most of the institutions still depend on diesel-powered generators to provide backup power supply at very exorbitant costs.

According to him, “The cost of power threatens the survival of the University system in 2025 if the current challenge remains unaddressed by the relevant authorities of the government.”

Ijadunola, however, informed that a total of 51 graduates of the institution bagged First Class, while196 are in the Second Class Upper Division category.

According to him, 191 graduands are in the Second Class Lower Division and 46 in the Third Class category. “Across the two sessions of 2022/2023 and 2023/2024, we shall be awarding 484 Bachelor’s degrees and 74 graduate degrees to candidates that have been trained, examined, and found worthy, both in character and in learning, to be so admitted to the various degrees of the University.”

He said these consist of 228 and 256 undergraduate degrees for the 2022/2023 and 2023/2024 academic sessions respectively.

Furthermore, he disclosed that the University will be awarding 16 Postgraduate diplomas, 51 Master’s degrees, 2 Master of Philosophy degrees, and 5 Doctor of Philosophy degrees.

The VC said the university would also, “for the first time, award doctoral degrees, and also by extension, honorary doctoral degrees to two distinguished Nigerians who have excelled in their personal and corporate lives, demonstrating laudable philanthropic gestures and making monumental contributions to the educational development of the country.”