We Won’t Allow Sale Of Unity Colleges — Protesting Education Workers Block Minister Over King’s College Deal

Drama at the Federal Ministry of Education headquarters in Abuja on Wednesday as protesting workers blockaded the entrance to the ministry, preventing the Minister of Education, Dr. Tunji Alausa, from gaining access to his office.

The workers, chanting “Alausa must go,” are protesting the proposed 35-year concession of King’s College, Lagos, to the King’s College Old Boys’ Association (KCOBA).

The protesters argue that the handover of the 117-year-old Unity College threatens public ownership, workers’ welfare and the future of other Federal Unity Colleges.

The protest comes after a meeting between Alausa and labour on Monday. The Trade Union Congress (TUC) had asked its affiliates to suspend the industrial action, but some unions rejected the suspension and pressed on, culminating in Wednesday’s total blockade of the ministry.

According to TheCable, the implementation of the concession was subsequently suspended for two weeks after an emergency meeting between the minister and labour unions on Wednesday.

Resolutions reached the meeting:

1. No staff would be victimised for participating in the industrial action.
2. Policemen deployed to the college premises would be redeployed.
3. A 7-man committee was set up to deliberate on the concession arrangement with KCOBA.

The minister had insisted that King’s College was neither sold nor privatized, saying goveurnment would retain 100% legal title while KCOBA finances, rehabilitates and operates the school under a public-private partnership.

He however declared there was no going back on the concession, describing it as an intervention to fix decaying infrastructure, and accused some directors in the ministry and “unscrupulous members of staff” of fuelling the protest with misinformation.