The Federal Government has agreed to put on hold, for two weeks, the planned transfer of management of King’s College, Lagos, to the institution’s Old Boys’ Association following a meeting with education-sector labour unions in Abuja.
The decision was reached on Wednesday during discussions involving the Federal Ministry of Education and representatives of workers’ unions, amid mounting protests over the proposed concession of the 117-year-old federal institution.
Under the agreement reached at the meeting, the unions are to suspend their ongoing industrial action, while the Federal Government pledged that no worker would face disciplinary action or victimisation for taking part in the protests.
The government and the unions also agreed to establish a seven-member committee to examine the terms of the concession agreement involving the King’s College Old Boys’ Association and negotiate the way forward.
As part of the resolutions, the authorities also agreed to withdraw police personnel deployed to the school premises.
The development follows days of tension over the government’s decision to hand the management of the Lagos-based college to its Old Boys’ Association under a public-private partnership framework.
Workers have opposed the arrangement, arguing that it effectively amounts to privatising a federal unity school. The government, however, has rejected that interpretation, maintaining that the concession does not transfer legal ownership of the institution, which remains with the Federal Government.
Police Deployment Sparks Fresh Tension
The dispute intensified on Tuesday when members of the school’s staff unions prevented representatives of the Old Boys’ Association from gaining access to the premises. The confrontation prompted the deployment of a large contingent of police officers.
By Wednesday morning, security personnel had taken positions around the school, with several police vehicles stationed near the gates and adjoining roads.
The heightened security presence resulted in traffic diversions around the area, with motorists approaching from the Tafawa Balewa Square direction towards CMS reportedly redirected to alternative routes.
Despite the heavy police presence, protesting staff and parents did not gather at the school gates.
The Chairman of the Association of Senior Civil Servants of Nigeria, King’s College branch, Sam Enang, said workers deliberately stayed away after receiving information about the scale of the police deployment.
According to Enang, police officers and security vehicles began arriving at the school from the early hours of Wednesday, prompting union leaders to advise staff against returning to the premises in order to prevent another confrontation.
He said the decision was aimed at avoiding injuries or further escalation after the events of the previous day.
Enang alleged that police personnel were deployed at several access points around the school, including the main and rear gates.
He also claimed that members of the Old Boys’ Association entered the premises under police escort while staff remained outside.
Despite the temporary withdrawal from the school gate, Enang said the unions had not abandoned their opposition to the concession.
He stated that workers would continue their campaign against the arrangement until the government reconsidered its position.
Government Maintains School Has Not Been Sold
The controversy centres on the Federal Government’s plan to involve the King’s College Old Boys’ Association in the management of the institution.
While the unions have described the move as a form of privatisation, the government has insisted that the arrangement does not amount to a sale of the college.
Officials have maintained that the Federal Government remains the legal owner of King’s College and that the proposed partnership concerns its management rather than ownership.
The disagreement nevertheless triggered industrial action and protests by workers both at the school in Lagos and at the Federal Ministry of Education headquarters in Abuja.
The latest agreement provides a temporary window for both sides to review the disputed arrangement through the proposed seven-member committee.
The two-week suspension is expected to provide an opportunity for the government, labour unions and other stakeholders to examine the concession agreement and seek a resolution to the dispute.
The crisis had reached a peak on Tuesday when security personnel opened the school gates amid resistance from protesting workers. The incident resulted in a physical confrontation, with reports that some staff members were injured and at least one was taken away in a police vehicle.
The new agreement between the government and the unions now places the immediate implementation of the concession on hold while negotiations and a review of the arrangement take place.
