By Abdulfatai Ibrahim
The Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFUND) has come a long way in aid of higher institutions of learning in the country. The release of intervention funds for the building of classrooms, laboratories, well stocked and equipped libraries have no doubt made learning more meaningful and conducive for students in the ivory tower across the country.
The Act 2011 repealed the Education Tax Act Cap. E4 Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004 and Education Tax Fund (Amendment) Act No. 17, 2003 and established TetFUND charged with the responsibility of managing and disbursing education tax to public tertiary education institutions in Nigeria. To enable TETFUND achieve its objectives, the Act imposes a 2% education tax on the assessable profit to all registered companies in Nigeria.
The Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) is empowered by the Act to assess and collect education tax. The Fund administers the tax imposed by the Act and disburses the amount to tertiary educational institutions at federal and state levels. It also monitors the projects executed with the funds allocated to the beneficiaries.
TETFUND has become such a strong institution that people hardly know that it is headed by an international scholar of repute, Professor Suleiman Elias Bogoro, who is silently pulling the strings in making sure that federal and state-owned tertiary institutions receive the needed support from the federal government.
Nigerians who have been clamoring for strong institution and not strong individuals can now heave a sigh of relief, if what is happening at TETFUND is anything to go by. Since his appointment as the Executive Secretary of TETFUND on April 14, 2014, Prof Bogoro has left no one in doubt as to what he can do with public funds.
Given his performance at TETFUND, Nigerians especially those in the education sector have continued to shower encomiums on this Professor of Animal Science and Consultant/Project Team Leader on several projects; for the World Bank, UNDP, USAID, Nigeria Institute for Peace and Conflict Resolution (IPCR), among others.
Stakeholders’ comments on TETFUND’s service delivery under the visionary leadership of Bogoro include: “TETFUND is one of the agencies that have showed appreciable level of performance” – Leadership newspaper’s opinion poll of July 1, 2015;. “TETFUND under Prof. Bogoro is working; taxpayers’ money is well utilised. If you come to Yabatech, apart from infrastructure, we are now bridging the gap between industry and classroom.
Without TETFUND, it would have been impossible” – Dr Margaret Ladipo, Rector Yabatech, Lagos; “almost all infrastructures in public institutions can be credited to TETFUND” – Dr Hans Senwua, provost College of Education Katsina-Ala, Benue state; “It is a thing of joy for us to associate with Prof. Suleiman Bogoro, an achiever who has greatly used his good office to improve the standard of education in Nigeria” – Prof. Stephen Malo, VC Solomon Lar University, Bokkos, Plateau state.
Others are:
“Our major projects are been funded by TETFUND under the leadership of Prof. Bogoro, we thank God this bold initiative by TETFUND is coming at a time that the University is rated as no one in the country” – Prof. Faraday Orumwense, VC University of Benin; “To God be the Glory that TETFUND made funds available in order for us to realise our dreams – “Prof. Edeoga, VC Michael Okpara University of Agriculture Umudike, “We acknowledge the role TETFUND has been playing in helping to fund some of the projects in our institutions” – VC Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University, Bauchi; “We commend Bogoro as a pragmatic administrator for his thoughtfulness and concern for the welfare of his people and education development in Nigeria”- Gen Yakubu Gowon, GCFR.
“We praise Bogoro for funding research and infrastructural developments in tertiary institutions” – Prof. Musbau Akanji, VC, FUT, Minna.
“TETFUND under Bogoro has become an international brand with some African countries visiting Nigeria to study this organisation in order to replicate same in their respective countries”- Olumide Afolabi, public affairs analyst; “We remain grateful to TETFUND under the visionary leadership of Prof. Bogoro for his support on training of teaching and non-teaching staffs as well as on research grants” – Prof. Jelil Oguntola, Acting VC Osun State University;
“TETFUND under Bogoro is a blessing to Nigerian tertiary institutions, attributing the success of the college to the agency’s financial support, we commend TETFUND for the efficient disbursement of funds to tertiary institutions across the country” – Dr. Emmanuel Adeniyi, Provost, College of Education (Special) Oyo state; “We appreciate TETFUND for ensuring that theories that were impacted on students of institutions became transformed into practical experience, through series of capacity building programmes” – VC Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta.
“We commend TETFUND for funding the construction of several modern buildings within the College, among which include Library, a formal and Informal building, an ultra-media laboratory, technical and vocational building” – Dr. Patrick Uko, Provost Akwa Ibom state College of Education; “Members of the civil society collation undertook fact finding mission to universities, polytechnics, and specialised colleges in the 6 geo-political zones of the country, and we are proud of what we saw on ground by way of infrastructural development facilitated by TETFUND” – Coalition of 13 civil society organizations in Nigeria; “TETFUND-sponsored projects situated at Federal Colleges of Education across the country are appreciated and must be protected” – Prof. Monday Joshua, Executive Secretary National Commission for Colleges of Education.
With these opinions of stakeholders in our tertiary institutions of learning across the country on the numerous successes of TETFUND under the visionary leadership of Bogoro in just one year of his appointment, the goal of taking the educational sector to the mountain top is realisable.
Ibrahim, a public affairs analyst, wrote from Offa, Kwara state
