President Bola Tinubu has cancelled the controversial deduction of 40 per cent of internally generated revenue from federal universities across the country.

The President, who was represented by the Minister of Education, Tahir Mamman, spoke on Friday at the 75th Founder’s Day ceremony of the University of Ibadan and described the policy implementation as “ill-timed”.

He also maintained that it was not the best time for such a policy since the universities were struggling.

In his speech as a Visitor to the university, Tinubu pledged his commitment to the reform of the nation’s education sector as the bedrock for national development.

He said, “The 40 per cent IGR automatic deduction policy stands cancelled. This is not the best time for such a policy since our universities are struggling.”

The PUNCH Online reports that the Federal Government, in a letter dated October 17, 2023, titled ‘Implementation of 40% automatic deduction from internally generated revenue of partially funded Federal Government institutions,’ said it would begin the deduction with effect from November 2023.

The letter signed by the Accountant-General of the Federation, Mrs Oluwatoyin Madein, Director of Revenue and Investment, Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation, Felix Ore-ofe Ogundairo, said the auto-deduction policy of gross IGR was in line with the Finance Circular with reference number FMFBNP/OTHERS/IGR/CRF/12/2021 dated December 20, 2021.

Recall that the Committee of Vice Chancellors of Nigerian Universities had written a protest letter to the Federal Government, demanding that the government should rescind the plan to deduct 40 per cent of the Internally Generated Revenues of federal universities.

The Secretary-General Committee of Vice-Chancellors of Nigerian Universities, Prof. Yakubu Ochefu, said the government could not be demanding 40 per cent of varsities IGR when it had refused to grant them autonomy.

Ochefu told Saturday PUNCH that should the Federal Government spurn the plea by the VCs and go ahead with the policy, parents would bear the consequences.