August 10, 2026 | 12:15 PM
The National Association of Nigerian Students, NANS, has suggested that payment of its proposed ₦200 annual dues could become a condition for student mobilisation into the National Youth Service Corps.NANS President, Akinteye Babatunde, disclosed this in Facebook posts on Sunday and Monday while explaining plans to change how the association collects dues.Babatunde said NANS would collaborate with NYSC and that one of the requirements for camp mobilisation “is NANS dues receipt.
”In a video posted on Monday, he clarified that the association is considering a direct payment system to enable it collect dues from students instead of going through Student Union Governments and school management.According to him, the dues are just ₦200 per student annually and are not meant to add financial pressure on students.
“This is not an avenue to stress students further because the due is as low as 200 Naira per student in a year,” he said.He explained that the funds would be shared among NANS zonal structures, state structures and affiliated student bodies. The move, he said, is to make NANS financially independent and strengthen its capacity to defend students’ interests.
Babatunde alleged that 80 to 90 per cent of SUGs no longer control their dues, with some institutions releasing only a fraction of what is collected. He cited the University of Benin as an example, alleging that management frustrated the SUG’s access to funds after it opposed a fee hike.“We are considering moving from getting the due through capitation to having a platform where we can get it directly from students,” he stated.
He added that NANS has continued to intervene in student issues despite financial constraints, and receives thousands of complaints monthly. “When I speak to you, I have about 3,000, 4,000 emails of student complaints… genuine complaints,” he said.Babatunde also said NANS needs to be free from government influence in order to effectively challenge agencies on behalf of students. “How do you want people to run to politicians for support and still want to fight those agencies?” he asked.
The NANS President said the association will amend its constitution and work with relevant agencies to create a system for direct remittance of the ₦200 dues. “We are going towards agencies to cooperate with to get this due directly to the organisation, no more to the management, no more to the SUGs,” he added.He noted that while the new system may not benefit his current administration, it will strengthen NANS for future leaders.
NYSC has its own statutory mobilisation requirements. Any inclusion of NANS dues would have to be formally adopted before it can take effect.
