Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu has commended President Bola Tinubu for signing the student loan bill into law.

Mr Sanwo-Olu gave the commendation on Thursday at the 26th convocation and 40th anniversary of the Lagos State University (LASU).

Mr Tinubu, on Monday, June 12, signed the bill into law, establishing a Nigerian Education Loan Fund, from which interest-free loans would be given to poor students.

The president said the bill would provide opportunities for children of people experiencing poverty to realise their dreams of acquiring tertiary education.

The governor, therefore, urged all Nigerians, especially the intended beneficiaries, to embrace the opportunity in good faith.

According to him, the Lagos government is focused on assisting students in government tertiary institutions within the state to discover their talents, harness their potential and refocus toward excellence, entrepreneurship and self-sustenance.

“As a government, we are not unaware that university operations are service-oriented, and as such, the need to continually improve on quality benchmarks is a continuum,” explained Mr Sanwo-Olu. “Very importantly, we are also not unaware that sustaining an effective university that can compete favourably on a global stage requires huge financial investments.”

The Lagos governor added that while “we are committed to the aspirations of the founding fathers of the institution, we are resolved to surpass the gains of yesterday by setting a new narrative” for the institution.

He stated, “In line with this commitment, our administration has ensured that most of the legacy projects it initiated on the institution’s campus have either been completed or are near completion.”

Mr Sanwo-Olu said the projects included the university’s main library; the faculty of education annexe; the faculty of management sciences building; the Lagos State University technology hub, and the “ultra-modern” hostel facilities. 

(NAN)