The government’s new tax structure, which now varies from N450,000 to N2.2 million based on the size of the institution, is choking them.

In Enugu State, private school operators are concerned about the rise in recent school closures, blaming it on the government’s outrageous levies and unconvincing justifications.

The owners are requesting assistance, claiming that the new tax laws implemented by the government are oppressing them and that the amount owed varies according on the size of the school, from N450,000 to N2.2 million.

Many institutions are being severely impacted by this sudden increase from the N30,000 that was paid during the previous administration, resulting in closures.

Amb. Emeka Grahams, the chairman of the Association of Private School Owners of Nigeria, accused the government on Sunday during a news conference in Enugu of closing private schools that have been hiring staff and enhancing the quality of education in the area.

Grahams stated, “Hundreds of jobless graduates and secondary school dropouts who would have engaged in one or more social vices and been a nuisance to the State have found employment through private schools.

Despite the fact that private schools bring in a lot of money, they receive no funding at all, and their facilities and supplies should be comparable to those of public schools.

“The government counts all the students enrolled in private schools, both those with approval and those without, in an annual school census.

“They utilise this amount to obtain educational resources from overseas educational contributors; none of it is directed towards private schools. This is on top of the Universal Basic Education (UBEC) funds, which are only utilised by public schools.

“After taking power in 2023, the Enugu State administration began constructing smart schools, with plans to have them finished and open for student enrolment by September 2025.

Therefore, it will take the government around three years to build its smart schools using money from taxpayers and other federal sources. In the meantime, private school owners have three months, from June 24 to September 24, 2024, to install all the facilities needed to meet the requirements of their smart schools and pay between N450,000 and N2.2 million to obtain a licence or risk having their schools closed.

He stated, “A, Senior Secondary – application form – N200,000; two years provisional approval – N300,000; application for licence – N200,000; yearly renewal fee – N200,000,” outlining the amounts that schools are expected to pay. You pay N900,000 in total to manage senior secondary school alone.

B. Full Basic Education, Nursery 1 through JSS 3: N500,000 for the application form; N250,000 for the first two years of provisional permission; N250,000 for the licence application; N300,000 for the annual renewal cost. The entire cost of basic schooling is N1.3 million.

“By implication, to run nursery 1 to SS3, the school should pay N2.2 million to the government that provides nothing, not even public school bus for school pupils.”

“The government charges – application form – N200,000; two years provisional approval – N200,00; application for licence – N200,000 and yearly renewal fee – N200,000 totalling N800,000.” he said, “for category C, intermediate basic – Nursery 1 – Primary 6.”

Application form: N100,000; two years of provisional approval: N100,000; licence application: N100,000; annual renewal fee: N150,000; total: N450,000 for Category D Early Childhood – Nursery 1 – Primary 3.”

He went on, “The inference is that if these laws are permitted to pass, private school tuition will skyrocket since the owners will have to pay for other government taxes, teacher wages, and facility maintenance.

“Parents who cannot handle the increase in school fees will pull their kids out of nowhere because public schools are inadequate and smart schools are not prepared—even when they are—to accept all the kids leaving private schools.”

The chairman highlighted the need for government support for private schools because they are significant players in the education system.

He pointed out that the administration of Governor Peter Mbah has neglected to inform them of its new policies and has instead chosen to keep them in the dark.

He said that the programs of the government lacked a “human face.”

Essentially, the chairman is emphasising the role that private schools play in the educational system and the necessity of government assistance for them. Grahams also bemoaned the lack of recognition of their significance by Governor Mbah’s government and its failure to include them in its latest projects.

“We have begged the Commissioner to give us time (at least two years), including our request to see the governor on this matter, but all of our pleas have been in vain,” he stated. “Private schools were not consulted in making the new government policy which is currently implemented on them.”

“Both the list of the minimum standard for which schools are closed down now and the list of government approved books which is part of their demand now were not made available to us.”

Private school owners claimed that the previous administration did not view unapproved schools as unlawful, but rather made every effort to motivate them to put in extra effort and obtain official clearance.

“Such schools were taken into consideration, but there was an additional fee to take government-organized exams,” he stated. We find it incomprehensible that the administration would choose the so-called “Smart Schools” over the state’s already-existing government institutions with their established systems.

Must we constantly adopt the foreign, western-style education system instead of creating or supporting one that is indigenous to our region and functional for our society?

The gist of the matter is that, in the event that the government chooses not to assist private schools, it should leave them alone and focus on improving its own institutions of higher learning.

“They stated that in addition to providing free food, uniforms and transportation, they want to provide free education. If they implement all of those plans, parents will pull their children from school, and private schools will be forced to close when they are empty.”