Why UNIBEN Introduced Charges On Delayed Payment Of Fees – VC

By Ayodele Oni

The Vice Chancellor of  University of Benin, (UNIBEN), Prof Lilian Salami, has said that refusal of students to pay necessary fees as scheduled was having negative impact on the programmes of the University.

According to her, the growing trend of students’ late registration and delay in payment led to the introduction of the late registration fee, ranging between N6,000 and N20,000.

The Vice Chancellor said in Benin, that research further showed that there was a direct correlation between late registration and poor student academic performance.

“The sad fact is that less than 25 per cent of our students register on time yearly, no functional or high performing education institution can thrive with such lackluster statistics.

“Early registration remains  critical for effective operations of the university. Timely registration provides insight into the students’ volume/demand and allows for smarter planning to ensure that there are enough staff, courses and funding to support the students accordingly.

“It is important to note that in the past, other non-financial interventions in attempts to urge early registration have failed.

“It was based on the bad practice that the university Senate on Aug. 2, agreed to increase the existing payment of late fee from N10,000 to N20,000 on all students,  as another attempt to further encourage early registration.

“The announcement saw significant growth in early registrations from 2020 rate of 35 per cent to 93 per cent.

“We haven’t seen this rate of early registration in decades. It is a UNIBEN record without question, and kudos to those students who chose to make their education a priority.”

She explained that the senate reversed the decision due to the outcry and violent protest from students stressing that  the reversal of the position would not break the institution.

“I fundamentally believe that there are very few decisions that are irreversible and this is definitely not one of them.  At this time, the late fee is reversed and it is a closed case.

“UNIBEN is resilient and we will continue to move forward with a strong conviction to ensure that the university reaches its full potential as a premier academic institution.”

“How we gather the voice of the students and how we leverage technology to address these kinds of issues in the future.

“The goal remains to ensure that our great institution continues to strive and create an environment where all can succeed.”