By JKNewsMedia
THE FEDERAL government is facing renewed calls to cancel its concession agreement for King’s College, Lagos, as Corporate Accountability and Public Participation Africa (CAPPA) warn that transferring the school’s management to a private association would undermine the government’s responsibility to fund and administer public education.
JKNewsMedia.com reports that the organisation urged the government to use the two-week suspension of the arrangement to terminate it entirely rather than amend the signed Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) and proceed with implementation.
The FG approved the concession in July, while the King’s College Old Boys’ Association (KCOBA) announced a N100 billion endowment fund to support infrastructure renewal, teacher development, digital technology, scholarships and students’ welfare.
Following protests by workers and parents, the government suspended implementation and constituted a seven-member committee to review the agreement.
CAPPA said the suspension had not addressed its fundamental concern about transferring the management and governance of a publicly owned national institution to a private association.
It also rejected the government’s argument that the arrangement did not constitute privatisation because the state would retain legal ownership of the school.
The organisation argued that public ownership would become increasingly hollow if the government relinquished operational control, institutional governance and decision-making powers to a private body.
Established in 1909, King’s College is one of Nigeria’s oldest secondary schools and a significant part of the Federal Unity College system. CAPPA said the Unity Schools were established to bring children from different regions, ethnic groups, religions and social backgrounds into shared institutions while expanding access to quality public education.
Despite deteriorating infrastructure and rising school-related charges, King’s College and other Unity Schools remain comparatively accessible to working-class and low-income families, the organisation said.
CAPPA’s Assistant Executive Director, Zikora Ibeh, said the deterioration of public schools should prompt increased government investment rather than provide grounds for transferring their management.
“Government cannot neglect public schools until their infrastructure and learning environments deteriorate, only to present concession as the sole means of rescuing them. The condition of King’s College reflects inadequate public investment and weak administration,” Ibeh said.
The organisation pointed to the Federal Government’s 2026 executive budget proposal, which allocated about N3.52 trillion to education, representing approximately 6.1 per cent of the proposed national budget.
It said the allocation remained inadequate for a country grappling with dilapidated schools, overcrowded classrooms, teacher shortages, weak sanitation systems and millions of children without access to quality education.
CAPPA also argued that substantial increases in federally collected revenues and tax receipts should translate into greater investment in education and other essential public services.
It maintained that King’s College, as a federal institution and national public asset, required adequate budgetary allocations, transparent expenditure and accountable public management to address its infrastructural and administrative challenges.
The organisation warned that concession must not replace public funding or provide an escape from the government’s responsibility to deliver accessible, quality education.
It linked the King’s College arrangement to what it described as a broader pattern of governments weakening public institutions before presenting private participation as a solution.
CAPPA cited the increasing commercialisation of essential services and infrastructure, including water systems in Lagos, where concession plans and public-private partnerships could place services essential to everyday life under commercial control.
It said Nigerians already provide their own water, electricity, security, healthcare and education while continuing to pay taxes.
“If King’s College is concessioned today, which Unity School will follow tomorrow? If schools, water systems, hospitals and other essential services are steadily transferred to private managers, what precisely will remain of the government’s social responsibility?” Ibeh said.
While opposing the transfer of managerial control, CAPPA acknowledged that KCOBA could contribute significantly to restoring the school.
It said the association could renovate classrooms and hostels, equip laboratories and libraries, provide scholarships, support teachers and contribute to an independently administered endowment fund without assuming control of the institution.
Such contributions, the organisation stressed, should supplement rather than replace government funding and should not confer governance rights over the school.
JKNewsMedia.com also reports that CAPPA urged KCOBA to use its influence to demand adequate education funding and accountability from the Federal Government.
As immediate measures, the organisation called for the cancellation of the signed MoU and an independent assessment of King’s College’s infrastructure, staffing and learning needs.
It said the assessment should inform a costed rehabilitation plan funded through the federal budget, with clearly defined deadlines and publicly reported expenditure.
CAPPA further proposed a public oversight mechanism involving representatives of the Ministry of Education, teachers, workers, parents, students, alumni and independent education experts.
It called for the publication of all rehabilitation contracts, allocations and project reports, alongside independent audits to monitor progress.
Beyond King’s College, the organisation demanded a properly funded national renewal programme for all Unity Schools to ensure that government intervention did not depend on the wealth or political influence of individual alumni associations.
CAPPA commended the Association of Senior Civil Servants of Nigeria, the Nigeria Union of Teachers and the Trade Union Congress for opposing the concession.
It urged the unions, alongside the Nigeria Labour Congress, Parent-Teacher Associations, students, alumni and members of the public, to maintain their opposition until the agreement was cancelled.
The organisation also maintained that public education was a public good and a fundamental government responsibility, insisting that the state must fund, protect and administer it in the interests of all Nigerians.
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