The Joint National Assembly Committee on Tertiary Education has criticised the poor implementation of the 2025 Capital Budget component across universities nationwide.

The committee, which expressed its displeasure at the 2026 budget defence session organised for the National Universities Commission and federal universities in Abuja, warned that such poor performance should not be allowed to occur in the new fiscal year.

The chairman of the Senate Committee on Tertiary Education and TETFund, Muntari Dandutse, frowned at the reason for the poor performance, which was blamed on the “administrative director”.

The senator said that an administrative directive was not superior to an act of parliament, saying that university councils must be allowed to carry out their roles in line with the act.

Mr Dandutse said that the committees will soon embark on sensitisation in the six geopolitical zones of the country on managerial and administrative issues affecting tertiary education.

Also speaking, the chairman of the House Committee on University Education, Abubakar Fulata (APC-Jigawa), said that universities and other tertiary institutions of learning have been removed from the Integrated Payroll and Personnel Information System.

He said that, as a result of the removal, due to the peculiarities of the university system, it was improper to subject universities to the rigorous employment process of meeting with several ministries, departments, and agencies before recruitment.

The lawmaker said that the responsibility to ensure adequate staffing now falls under the jurisdiction of the university council. He, however, warned universities’ management against engaging in employment without adhering to the principles of federal character.

Mr Fulata also said that there was a need to revisit the issue of the schools’ electricity challenges, as they were not commercial ventures or profit-oriented institutions. He advised universities to seek alternative funding sources to complement the government’s efforts.

The executive secretary of NUC, Abdullahi Ribadu, said that while the number of universities in the country had risen to 300, the regulatory body’s staff strength is decreasing. According to the commission, since 2014, it has not carried out recruitment despite many workers leaving.

He said there was a recent waiver to employ about 200 workers, but the process was put on hold after over 26,000 applied for the job.

Similarly, the chairman of the Committee of Vice-Chancellors of Nigerian Federal Universities, Ishaya Tanko, said that the lack of adequate funding was affecting universities in the country in different ways.

Mr Tanko, the vice-chancellor of the University of Jos, said the school’s monthly overhead costs are N20 million, while the electricity bill alone accounts for about N80 million.

(NAN)