Is there no normative contradiction in the Federal Government of Nigeria entering a deal with a foreign university to open a campus in Nigeria? Does it not sound like passing a Vote of No Confidence on the national university system? (Individuals and critics can say so but not the FGN). What is it that makes President Tinubu and his Education minister fall fatally for a foreign university even as leader of a country which has the resources to, with a wager, turn its own university system into the best in the world?
These are some of the questions pundits are pondering upon across Nigeria following a deal between President Tinubu, his Minister of Education, Dr Alausa and the University of Coventry in the UK. The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) willing, a campus of the UK university should be up and running somewhere in Lagos by the end of the year.
There will not be anything ridiculous in describing the British university system one of the best if not the best in the world. Any other person may have his or her own reasons for such a claim but, for Intervention, the key reason for rating the UK university system so is its privileging of Continental Philosophy. Continental Philosophy is a deeper ocean of knowledge than, say, Analytical Philosophy. Oh yes, it is a matter of opinion but that should be closer to the ‘truth’. But is that the reason the FG itself entered this deal?
The University of Coventry is certainly a very active place, holding its place against its more known neighbor, the University of Warwick which usually has a smaller number of Nigerians compared to the University of Coventry. In fact, the University of Coventry could be called a Nigerian campus up to a point at a time.
Universities establishing their campuses here and there across the world is the contemporary trend. It is not clear if there are cases where a national government led the practice. Intervention stands to be educated on that.
What has been more common is what Mauritius did in 2014 when it was no longer comfortable with its educational system. Or what China was very good in doing by encouraging or even facilitating its nationals pouring into Western campuses, overcoming language barrier through technology and returning home with added value.
The FGN deal with the University of Coventry doesn’t appear to follow any of these models. It is not surprising that ASUU has opposed the deal, citing a contradiction between it and the FGN’s own policy foreclosing any new universities for the next six years, another ‘neither here nor there’ policy of this government.
The instability inherent in reality makes such a fixity totally unwise and inherently counter-productive. A smarter approach would have been to decide that every request for approval of a new university will be examined in its own merit. That way, ASUU’s point of departure in this case could have been anticipated and taken care of. As it is now, ASUU has a strong case.
It will be interesting how this ends!
