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UB Student President Rejects End Of fee Subsidy
posted (July 23, 2012)
Last week we told you about the ministry of Education's Plan to cease subsidizing UB students by paying for a 150 dollar increase in fees which was instituted 6 years ago but never passed on to students.

Today the President of the University's student body told us that as part of the youth movement called Nation builders - they are asking the government to reconsider:..

Hope Amadi, Student Government President - UB
"We are asking that - this time around when the minimum wage or cost of living is high is not a time when the government should be raising school fees."

Marion Ali, Reporter
"So you are making a preposition to government?"

Hope Amadi
"It's not like a preposition, it's like a father/child discussion; when your father makes decision you want to ask your father to reconsider. We from the University of Belize are asking the government to reconsider on their proposal of raising school fees come January because at this present time we cannot handle it."

Jules Vasquez
"You who are attending the school won't have to pay this increase."

Hope Amadi
"It doesn't matter whether we are paying the school fees or not."

Jules Vasquez
"It matters because what we are talking about is paying it."

Hope Amadi
"I want everybody to understand that whatever decisions we make today will affect the future generation. We only have one national university in this country and that is the University of Belize. As the national university school fees should be subsidize by the government, that is why it is called a national university."

Marion Ali, Reporter
"How do you respond to the criticism that this is all politically motivated?"

Hope Amadi
"Listen, you need to understand something, when your house is on fire, if you don't stand up for a way to quench that fire nobody would do it for you. I am a UB student, first of all my responsibility is to the students that I am representing. As the Student Government President, it is my responsibility to go out and say that this is what the students are saying. The students are saying "enough." We don't want our tuition to be raised. It is not politically motivated and I would say this, it doesn't matter if it is UDP or PUP in power - we don't want increment in school fees."

Jules Vasquez
"You don't want ever; 6 years ago you didn't want it."

Hope Amadi
"What has change from 6 years ago to today? Actually right now we are trying to discuss, we want the government to sit with us. We want to discuss and find an amicable way to solve the problem. If that couldn't work, we will see what happens in the future."

Marion Ali, Reporter
"What percentage of you student body is with you?"

Hope Amadi
"All of them are with me; I don't think anybody is backing out. To be honest, this is a unique time in the history of Belize, because the increment does not only affect UB students, SJC is in full support, Muffles Junior College is in full support, you know why? Because these students know that after graduation for most of them the next thing is UB and they know if they fight with UB right now it is going to help them."

The subsidy will end in January only for incoming students.

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