Speaking during ‘The Morning Brief’, a Channels Television
programme on Thursday, Osodeke said most governors duplicate universities in
their states to get a “piece of the pie” from the Tertiary Education Trust Fund
(TETFund).
“Any governor today establishing a university is eyeing
TETFund as a source of funding,” the ASUU president said.
“TETFund was created as an intervention fund, not the major
funding. The universities belong to the federal government, and the government
is supposed to fund them, while states are supposed to fund their own.”
“It is an intervention fund, but there are people who want
to have access to that money from the political circle, from the bureaucratic
circle, at all costs. We are struggling with that.”
The ASUU president said a structure should be created to
carry stakeholders along on how the fund is allocated and spent to enhance
transparency.
“There should be a stakeholders’ meeting to assess what you
want to do with the funds,” he added.
“You see today where somebody comes from the TETFund and
says, ‘I have a project for you, and I am going to be the contractor. We want
an open project.
“Every university council should be allowed to run their projects with the stakeholders involved.”