The National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) has again appealed to the federal government to urgently intervene and save its members, following plans by some tertiary institutions to increase tuition fees.

NANS said this in a statement on Thursday.

The association expressed displeasure with recent proposals for tuition fee increases, notably from the Federal University of Technology, Akure (FUTA) and the Federal College of Agriculture, Akure (FECA).

“It is disheartening and worrisome that despite the federal government’s explicit instructions against tuition fee hikes, certain vice-chancellors and heads of institutions seem poised to defy the directive.

“This we find barbaric and therefore call on the federal government to call erring institutions to order by demanding immediate intervention in the looming crisis surrounding such fee increment,” he said.

The union leader said that if the institutions disagreed with the government’s stance, NANS would mobilise Nigerian students nationwide to stage a protest until its demands were met.

“We also want to emphasise that the implementation of the new budget for education is closely monitored by NANS and any attempt to burden students with additional financial strain will be met with fierce resistance,” said NANS.

It said the negative effects of tuition fee hikes were far-reaching and severely impacted the nation’s future.

(NAN)