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VC denies lawmakers demanded N480m bribe for universities’ budget approval

The Vice-Chancellor of the Federal University, Gusau, Prof. Muazu Abubakar, has dismissed allegations that members of the House of Representatives Committee on University Education demanded N480 million to approve the 2025 budgets of federal universities.
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The Vice-Chancellor of the Federal University, Gusau, Prof. Muazu Abubakar, has dismissed allegations that members of the House of Representatives Committee on University Education demanded N480 million to approve the 2025 budgets of federal universities.

In a letter dated January 27 and addressed to the committee’s chairman, Abubakar Fulata, the VC refuted media reports claiming that lawmakers pressured vice-chancellors to pay N8 million each as a condition for budget approval.

Responding to the report, which referenced a “stubborn vice-chancellor” believed to be him, Abubakar stated that while he initially planned to ignore the claims, he decided to clarify the matter to prevent misleading narratives from being accepted as fact. “The attention of the Federal University, Gusau, has been drawn to a trending online report titled Investigation: Nigerian Lawmakers Demand N480 million from Universities to Approve 2025 Budget. We categorically state that no member of the university team present at the budget defence was part of the information circulated in the media. We urge you, Mr. Chairman, and your esteemed committee members to disregard this malicious and sensational report, which aims to mislead the public and undermine constructive journalism,” he wrote.

Abubakar commended the committee for its support, describing the budget defence session as “robust, friendly, and engaging.” Similarly, Fulata had earlier dismissed the allegations at a press briefing, insisting that they were a deliberate attempt to discredit the committee’s efforts to improve Nigeria’s education sector. “It is absurd for anyone to suggest that lawmakers demanded even a ‘kobo’ as a precondition for approving budget proposals,” Fulata stated, arguing that the report sought to mislead the public about the committee’s activities and the 10th House of Representatives.

In a statement last Wednesday, the House spokesman, Akin Rotimi, also rejected the claims, describing the media report as a deliberate attempt to tarnish the reputation of lawmakers. “The 10th House of Representatives is firmly committed to transparency, accountability, and the highest ethical standards in all its legislative activities. These values form the bedrock of our operations. It is, therefore, imperative to address the baseless and sensational allegations in the report, which appear to be part of a deliberate attempt to undermine the integrity of the House and erode public trust in this hallowed institution,” he said.

Rotimi further argued that the report “lacks any diligent investigative effort as they would want people to believe, and instead, amplifies fabricated narratives by individuals seeking to evade accountability.” The controversy has continued to generate debate, with stakeholders calling for greater scrutiny of budget processes and media accountability in reporting sensitive national issues.

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