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From Fred Ezeh, Abuja
The Federal Government has dismissed reports suggesting that King’s College, Lagos, has been sold or privatised, assuring students, parents, staff, alumni and other stakeholders that the 117-year-old institution remains publicly owned.
Minister of Education, Dr. Tunji Alausa, gave the clarification while explaining the Public-Private Partnership (PPP) concession agreement between the Federal Government and the King’s College Old Boys’ Association (KCOBA).
Alausa said the agreement transfers neither ownership nor proprietary interest in the school to KCOBA, stressing that the Federal Government retains the legal title as well as its statutory regulatory, monitoring, inspection and enforcement powers.
“Let me assure Nigerians, particularly the King’s College community, that this concession is not a sale of King’s College. Government has retained legal title to the institution and will continue to exercise its oversight responsibilities,” he said.
According to him, the concession was designed to mobilise the financial and management capacity needed to rehabilitate, modernise and sustain the institution, while preserving its public character and national identity.
He said the PPP arrangement underwent technical, economic, financial, legal, environmental and social assessments, as well as value-for-money, fiscal-impact, risk-allocation and commercial-structuring processes before receiving the necessary regulatory and Federal Executive Council approvals.
Under the agreement, KCOBA is expected to finance, rehabilitate, operate and maintain the school, including academic and administrative buildings, hostels, staff quarters, laboratories, libraries, dining facilities, health facilities, utilities, sports and recreational facilities.
The programme also provides for new classrooms, laboratories and hostels, improved sports facilities, learning resources and digital tools.
Alausa said the arrangement was necessary to address the institution’s infrastructure and operational challenges and ensure its long-term sustainability.
“King’s College is an institution with a remarkable history, but preserving that history requires us to invest in its future,” he said.
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On admission, the minister said the school would continue to operate within applicable Unity College policies, with merit, transparency, fairness and national representation maintained.
He said admission would continue to provide equitable representation from the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory, subject to merit requirements, while JSS1 admission would remain subject to the prescribed testing and assessment process, with the National Common Entrance Examination (NCEE) remaining central to the entry framework.
The minister also clarified that the concession agreement does not prescribe an automatic increase in school fees, although it does not establish a permanent fee freeze.
On staff welfare, Alausa said the agreement contained a Staff Transition and Protection Framework to ensure an orderly transition and continuity of teaching, boarding, security and other essential services.
He explained that existing employment obligations, arrears, pensions, gratuities and other liabilities arising before the transition would remain the responsibility of the Federal Government unless expressly assumed by KCOBA.
Following the transition, KCOBA would assume responsibility for relevant operating expenditure, including salaries, benefits and allowances of personnel engaged under the project, in line with applicable contracts and laws.
Alausa further stressed that government oversight would remain intact, with the agreement providing for key performance indicators, infrastructure standards, academic and student-development measures, reporting, audits, inspections and independent verification.
He said government retained corrective and step-in powers in cases of persistent underperformance or serious contractual default.
KCOBA would also be restricted from selling, transferring or disposing of concession assets without the required approvals, while asset stripping and deterioration beyond agreed standards were prohibited.
The minister said the agreement did not provide for a conventional monetary concession fee, noting that KCOBA’s obligations instead centred on capital investment, operational funding, infrastructure modernisation, institutional strengthening and measurable performance.
