The Federal Government has reassured students, parents, staff, alumni and the general public that King’s College, Lagos, has not been sold or privatised, stressing that the institution remains a publicly owned national institution, with legal title retained by the Federal Government.
This clarification follows protests by some unions in the education sector at the Federal Ministry of Education in Abuja on Thursday and Friday this week.
The Minister of Education, Dr Maruf Tunji Alausa, gave the assurance while clarifying the Public-Private Partnership (PPP) concession with the King’s College Old Boys’ Association (KCOBA).
The Minister explained that, under the Concession Agreement, the King’s College Old Boys’ Association (KCOBA) assumes responsibility for financing, rehabilitating, modernising, operating and maintaining the school, while the Federal Government retains legal title and its statutory, regulatory, monitoring, inspection and enforcement powers.
Dr Alausa explained that the concession was developed under the established PPP framework and subjected to the requisite technical, economic, financial, legal, environmental and social assessments, value-for-money analysis, fiscal-impact assessment, risk allocation and commercial structuring before securing the necessary regulatory and Federal Executive Council approvals.
He stressed that the Agreement expressly protects the public character and national identity of King’s College and does not transfer ownership or create a proprietary interest in favour of the King’s College Old Boys’ Association (KCOBA).
According to the Minister, admissions will continue to comply with applicable Unity College policies and the principles of merit, transparency, fairness and national representation, including equitable representation from the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory, subject to applicable merit requirements.
The Minister also clarified that the Agreement does not prescribe an automatic increase in school fees, while noting that it does not establish a permanent fee freeze.
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