Sometimes I wonder if our politicians really tell lies more than our Professors in the Universities across the nation. Lying is a fashionable, necessary and essential character that most politicians in Nigeria must have in order to get away with their numerous misconducts in office and mismanagement of public funds. Personally, I don’t get irritated with the “lies” of our politicians as it is no more new to me and also, many of my country men have gotten used to hearing them speak about imaginary and abstract projects that they’ve being spending billions of naira on. Academic world should be the only sane and corruption free part of this country, as all claims must be statistically backed or scientifically proved. Seeing a Professor, in a university display this unique lying character of our politicians baffles me a lot and I just can’t hold back my tears as I cry for the students that will pass through such Professors.

Surfing the net this morning know the latest happenings in my nation led me to a news on National Mirror’s website titled “UI cries out over huge electricity bill” (http://nationalmirroronline.net/new/ui-cries-out-over-huge-electricity-bill/). Reading through the news, I can’t but notice how a Professor lied to the general public about some important issues in the Premier University. The Dean of Students’ Affairs, Prof. Akinola Alada spoke more like a politician (with his lying hat on) as he tried to justify the reason for restricting cooking by students to kitchenettes (with prepaid meter to be paid for by students). He also talked more on the resurrection of the cafeterias which used to provide our so called Professors with free meals in their university days but ironically, is so expensive for an average student to buy food to his/her satisfaction. All because of electricity bill?

The respected Professor (now Profitician) claimed that 3,000 students live in the Hall of residence in UI and as thus, only N140 million was generated from students accommodation fee for a period of three years and also, that the University spent over N400 million on hostels and electricity bills within this same period of years and that the management subsides (subsidy again?) accommodation to the tune of N250 million . Permit me to run a reality check on the claim of our dear Profitician.
The official website of the institution, has on this page “ http://www.ui.edu.ng/content/profile-existing-halls-residence “, the profile of the existing halls of residence in the University. These halls, which are 12 in numbers accommodate 8,748 students but our Profitician claimed that only 3,000 can be accommodate or rather, live in the halls. Who is deceiving who? Oh! Did you just say one hall of residence is in UCH? Alexandra Brown Hall right? That’s true. Probably the Dean also exclude this hall while making his conclusion of 3000 students. Then I will like to do little subtraction. Alexandra Brown Hall accommodates 698 students and taking that out of 8,748 leaves 8,050 students. Still far from 3,000. Please, bear it in mind that both undergraduate and post-graduate (PG) students live in the halls of residence and thus make up the 8,050 students. Does that mean that only N140 million was generated from 8,050 students in 3 years?

Let me do little mathematics here. With 8,050 paying the present accommodation fee which is the same for the period of years claimed by the Dean, then in a year, N112,700,000 will be generated from accommodation and for three years, N338,100,000. Subtracting this from the N400 million claimed to be spent on hostels leave us with N61,900,000. This is approximately N62 million compared to N250 million claimed by the Dean. I said earlier that both undergraduate and post graduate students live in these halls of residence, with the post graduate student paying more than N30,000 for accommodation. Two halls of residence (Abubakar hall and Tafawa Balewa Hall) house only post graduate students while another hall house both post graduates and undergraduates (Awo Hall). The two PG halls can accommodate 475 students and also assuming that Awo hall only accommodate undergraduates, then total number of undergraduates paying N14,000 as accommodation fee is 7575. So, back to mathematics.

7,575 (undergraduates)* N14,000 gives N106,050,000 while
475 (PG students) * N30,000(though almost double this amount) gives N14,250,000.
In total, N120,300,000 (N106,050,000 + N14,250,000 ) is generated in a year and in three years, N360,900,000. Subtracting our final answer from the claimed N400 million gives N39.1 million as what UI should be paying for the supposed subsidy of accommodation. Less I forget, Lecturers also have quarters in the school and as thus contribute to the high amount paid for electricity bills.

Another subsidy palaver again? Who then are the principal actors in UI subsidy movie? Who are the cabals that want the students to suffer ? No cooking in the rooms and even stove is prohibited? Is this a move by UI to generate funds for:
1. those Lecturers renting out BQ of their quarters at exorbitant price?
2. those Lecturers that managed to build a face-me-I-slap you house in Ajibode?
3. those Landlords in Agbowo?
4. their wives that manage the cafeterias in the school?
or is this move really for the betterment of the students?

Why are these Profiticians lying to the general public ?