Students of Prince Abubakar Audu University (PAAU), Anyigba, have erupted in outrage over what they describe as an 80 per cent increase in tuition fees, with the controversy intensifying after the Students’ Union Government (SUG) President, Comrade Rilwan Abubakar Obaje, was directed to hand over and reportedly suspended in connection with the protest.
The anger boiled over after students accessed the university payment portal and discovered sharply higher charges. Nursing students and others complained that fees had jumped dramatically, with many labelling the rise an 80 per cent hike despite management’s insistence that the figures reflect a state-approved uniform fee structure across Kogi’s three public universities rather than a fresh increase by PAAU.
University management had earlier clarified that it had not raised fees unilaterally but aligned with a harmonised structure approved by the Kogi State Government. Yet students rejected the explanation, arguing the sudden higher demands on the portal placed an unbearable burden on families already struggling under economic pressure.
Tensions escalated after student leaders met management over the fees. Shortly afterwards, the university reconstituted the SUG election committee, citing the expiration of the outgoing executive’s tenure, and directed immediate past SUG President Rilwan Abubakar Obaje and other members of the 2025/2026 executive to hand over all union and university property to the Director of Security. Reports circulating among students and on social media framed the directive as a suspension linked directly to the fee protest.
The move has drawn sharp criticism from alumni and observers who say the procedure is irregular. A former student of the institution, reacting to the developments, wrote:
“I have seen several narratives online and I can say boldly that many Kogites have lost it. In PAAU, an SUG election is conducted every first semester & until an SUG President hands over, he remains the president even after graduating. In history, it has never been heard that an SUG President hands over to VC or school management, what do they want to do with the office? Plus, why is he asked to handover immediately after leading his team to discuss on matters regarding the 80% increase of school fees? We all know where this is coming from, but because y’all can’t cutoff from the one feeding you, you are deciding to play dumb. This is so irritating.
I sometimes try my best to avoid commenting on these type of issues and to face my front, but this particular one is somehow. For no just reason, there is an 80% increment in school fees with harmonization claims. Then SUG stands against it asking for clarity and he the President is instructed to handover, hand over to who? And some individuals are supporting it, I just feel we as Kogites deserve all the wickedness thrown at us because we are the problem. Tuueeehhh, I pour una early morning spit.”
The former student’s intervention has amplified campus and online debate, with many students viewing the rapid demand for handover of keys and property as punitive rather than routine. Critics argue that traditional practice allows a sitting SUG president to remain in office until a proper handover to a newly elected successor, not to university management.
As the election committee begins work under the Dean of Student Affairs, students continue to demand clarity on the fee structure and express concern that questioning the charges has come at a cost to their union leadership.
Management maintains that the steps taken simply follow the expiration of the previous tenure and the need to restore democratic student government processes.
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