ASUU Urges National Assembly to Reject Tax Bill Provision Threatening TETFund

The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has raised serious concerns over the proposed Nigeria Tax Bill 2024, currently before the National Assembly, citing its potential danger to the survival of the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund).

In a strongly worded press release, ASUU criticized the planned reallocation of the Education Tax, referred to as the Development Levy, which finances TETFund’s educational programs. The proposed bill seeks to divert these funds to the newly established Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND).

ASUU highlighted Section 59(3) of the Nigeria Tax Bill, which stipulates a phased reduction in TETFund’s share of the Development Levy starting from 2025, with a complete cessation by 2030. The union labels this provision as “dangerous and unpatriotic,” warning that it would effectively terminate TETFund’s operations.

“TETFund has been the backbone of infrastructural development, postgraduate training, and research capacity building in Nigeria’s public tertiary institutions for over a decade,” the statement reads. ASUU describes the potential loss of TETFund as a “technical abrogation” of the agency, equating it to “killing a parent to keep a newborn child alive.”

The union underscores TETFund’s critical contributions, including reducing industrial disputes, renovating educational facilities, and enhancing staff development. It also notes that TETFund’s success has inspired similar initiatives in other African countries.

ASUU urges the National Assembly, particularly the Senate President and the Speaker of the House of Representatives, to reject any provision that threatens TETFund’s existence. “Abrogating the TETFund Act 2011 would be a great disservice to education and to Nigeria as a whole,” the union concludes.

By Bashar Muhammad
GMN Correspondent, Sokoto