RismadarVoice Reporters
September 16, 2026
The Federal Government of Nigeria has ruled out reversing its decision to concede the management of King’s College, Lagos, to the King’s College Old Boys Association, insisting that the arrangement will neither transfer ownership of the institution nor transform it into an elitist school.
Minister of Education, Dr Tunji Alausa, stated the government’s position on Wednesday in Abuja amid continuing opposition to the arrangement and protests involving workers, parents and other stakeholders.
Alausa said the concession was designed to address longstanding infrastructure and management challenges at the college by attracting additional investment and improving the institution’s administration.
He stressed that King’s College would remain the property of the Federal Government despite the management arrangement with the King’s College Old Boys Association, KCOBA.
According to the minister, the initiative should be regarded as an intervention aimed at improving the institution rather than a sale or transfer of government property.
The government’s position came amid protests over the concession and concerns about its possible implications for King’s College and the wider Federal Unity College system.
SECURITY TIGHTENED AROUND KING’S COLLEGE
Security operatives were deployed around the King’s College premises in Onikan, Lagos, on Wednesday following tensions surrounding protests against the concession.
The deployment followed an altercation a day earlier involving some protesting parents, police officers and members of KCOBA.
By Wednesday morning, protesters were no longer gathered around the school’s main entrance, while police personnel and vehicles had been positioned at strategic locations around the institution.
Security officers also restricted movement on some roads leading to the college.
The measures affected traffic around the area, with motorists travelling from the Tafawa Balewa Square axis towards CMS Bus Stop redirected to alternative routes.
The heightened security presence came as discussions continued among the Federal Government, KCOBA and stakeholders opposed to the concession.
OLD BOYS MEET OVER MANAGEMENT ARRANGEMENT
Members of the KCOBA leadership arrived at the college at about 11 a.m. on Wednesday for discussions concerning the management arrangement.
The delegation included the association’s National President, Ibrahim Kassim Imam, and former President of the Nigerian Bar Association, Olumide Akpata.
Following the meeting, the association’s executive committee addressed journalists and sought to reassure parents, workers and other stakeholders about the future of the institution.
KCOBA said the proposed management structure would not abandon the principles upon which Nigeria’s Federal Unity Colleges were established.
The association maintained that King’s College would continue to operate within the philosophy of the Unity College system despite its increased role in managing the institution.
‘WE WON’T TURN KING’S COLLEGE INTO AN ELITIST SCHOOL’
Addressing concerns that the concession could result in higher costs or make admission to the institution increasingly restricted to wealthy families, KCOBA said it had no intention of transforming King’s College into an elitist institution.
“We are saying it again that we are not going to turn the college into an elitist one,” Imam said.
“We will run it in line with the principles behind the setting up of unity colleges and their operation.”
The assurance reflects one of the central issues surrounding the controversy, as opponents of the arrangement have raised questions about accessibility and the future character of the institution under the concession.
The Federal Government and KCOBA, however, maintain that the initiative is intended to strengthen the college’s infrastructure and management while preserving its status and underlying principles.
King’s College remains one of Nigeria’s Federal Unity Colleges, institutions established to bring students from different parts of the country together and promote national integration.
With the government ruling out a reversal, attention is expected to remain on how the concession will be implemented and how concerns raised by parents, workers and other stakeholders will be addressed.
