UNEC College of Medicine Students Barred from Exams for Resisting Dubious ‘Development Fee’ Extortion

College of Medicine Students of the University of Nigeria, Enugu were barred from taking their examinations today for refusing to pay a controversial ₦30,000 “College Development Fee.”

The fee, described by management as necessary to “cater for exams, buy reagents, cover logistics for professional examiners, and purchase mannequins,” has been widely criticised by students who argue that the stated justifications are either redundant, exaggerated, or outright irrelevant to many departments.

“This fee is unjustifiable,” said a student leader who spoke under anonymity in a viral video. “We’ve written exams for years without this sudden charge. Our departments already handle logistics for external examiners, and the mannequins they claim to be buying are not needed by all students plus the ones available are still in good condition.”

Efforts by the student leadership to engage the administration were met with stiff resistance.

According to sources, the Dean of the Faculty of Health Sciences, Prof. Charles Ezema, dismissed the students’ economic concerns, reportedly telling them to “go and apply for a loan” if they couldn’t afford the fee.

Many students say they are struggling to survive the worsening economic conditions in the country and view the imposed fee as exploitative.

Students allege that the threat of being denied access to exams has become a repeated tactic to force compliance. Last semester, students in the Medicine and Dentistry faculties were allegedly coerced into paying ₦60,000 each under the threat of having their MBBS results withheld.

Further tensions rose when students called for an emergency student congress to address the issue, only to be summoned instead to a closed-door meeting with the Deputy Vice-Chancellor, Provost, Faculty Deans, and selected student leaders.

According to participants, the meeting was used to pressure them into cancelling the congress and accepting the fees, with veiled threats about the consequences of resistance.

“This is no longer about just money,” said another student. “It’s about our right to education and freedom from extortion. We are being used to fund their retirement plans.”

Students now fear that the fee will not only be enforced but also increased in subsequent sessions, with some alleging that plans are underway to raise it to ₦100,000 per student annually.

The university administration has yet to issue an official response at the time of this report.

Meanwhile, students say the fight is far from over, insisting: “Enough is enough. We cannot continue like this.”