By Habeeb Ibrahim
The proposed concession of King’s College, Lagos, to its Old Boys’ Association has divided stakeholders of the 117-year-old institution, with parents and students rejecting the arrangement while the alumni body says it is intended to restore and modernise the school without changing its public ownership.
The disagreement followed the Federal Government’s approval of the concession in July 2026. The development was announced by the President of the King’s College Old Boys’ Association, KCOBA, Alhaji Kashim Ibrahim-Imam, who described it as a new governance framework for the institution.
KCOBA said the arrangement was approved by President Bola Tinubu and was neither a sale nor privatisation of King’s College. The association said it would partner with the Federal Government to rehabilitate the school, improve its infrastructure and strengthen its academic and administrative systems.
The announcement has, however, met opposition from the school’s Parent-Teacher Association, which argues that transferring management to the Old Boys could affect affordability, access and the public character of the institution.
The disagreement became more visible on Thursday when parents and students marched through parts of Lagos Island in protest against the concession.
The protesters began from the school gate and moved through areas including Tafawa Balewa Square and the National Museum, carrying placards with messages such as “King’s College is not for sale” and “Federal Government, we say no to concession.”
PTA Chairman, Peter Oluwaleye, said the parents had previously communicated their concerns to the Federal Ministry of Education and the Presidency but had not received a response.
He said the association had also raised the matter at its Annual General Meeting and through letters to government authorities.
Oluwaleye said the parents opposed the transfer of the school’s management to KCOBA and questioned the reported 35-year duration of the proposed arrangement.
“We see these old boys association members as businessmen that cannot run an educational institution of this magnitude. They are planning to run the school for an initial 35 years. But we, the parents, are saying no,” he said, according to The PUNCH.
The PTA also threatened legal action and said it would oppose the resumption of students until the Ministry of Education responded to its concerns.
KCOBA, however, has presented the concession as an intervention by former students seeking to preserve an institution that shaped their own education.
Under the proposed arrangement, the Federal Government would retain ownership of King’s College while KCOBA takes on management responsibilities under a new governance framework. The association says the plan will support the rehabilitation of classrooms, laboratories, hostels and other facilities, as well as teacher development, digital technology, scholarships, research and student welfare.
KCOBA has also launched a N100bn Collegium Fund to finance the proposed transformation. The association maintains that the arrangement is not a sale or privatisation and that the school will retain its federal character, public identity and national significance.
Founded in 1909, King’s College has produced generations of prominent Nigerians, including former Vice-President Alex Ekwueme, former Chief Justice Adetokunbo Ademola, former Lagos State Governor and Federal Minister Lateef Jakande, former Central Bank Governor and Emir of Kano Muhammadu Sanusi II, former Senate President Bukola Saraki, businessman Atedo Peterside and former National Security Adviser Babagana Monguno.
The association represents generations of former students, popularly known as Old Boys, who have remained connected to the institution through alumni activities, mentorship, fundraising and development projects.
That relationship with the school is central to KCOBA’s argument for the concession.
Ibrahim-Imam said generations of Kingsmen had watched the deterioration of some of the facilities and systems that once made the school a leading secondary institution and had spent years advocating for its renewal.
The association subsequently launched a N100bn endowment fund to support the proposed transformation.
The fund is expected to finance infrastructure renewal, teacher development, digital technology, scholarships, innovation, research and students’ welfare.
Among the initial donors reported were Ibrahim-Imam, who pledged N1bn; First Lady Oluremi Tinubu, who donated N10m; and former Board of Trustees Chairman Philip Asiodu and current Board Chairman Femi Okunnu, who each donated N100m.
Ibrahim-Imam said the concession would allow the Old Boys to partner with government in upgrading the school while maintaining its ownership and public character.
He described the development as a potential model for the renewal of public education in Nigeria.
But the PTA has questioned what the arrangement could mean for students and parents.
In a communiqué signed by Oluwaleye and its Secretary, Balogun A. O., the association said King’s College was established to provide affordable and quality education regardless of students’ social or economic backgrounds.
It expressed concern that the concession could result in higher school fees and other charges, potentially making the institution less accessible to children from low-income families.
The PTA said it was not opposed to private investment in education but rejected an arrangement that, in its view, could undermine affordability, equity and public access.
It also criticised what it described as inadequate consultation with parents, teachers and the host community before the concession was approved.
The Association of Senior Civil Servants of Nigeria has similarly opposed the development, warning that the concession could become a precedent for other Federal Government Colleges.
ASCSN argued that Federal Government Colleges were established to provide quality education and promote national integration by bringing students from different parts of the country together. The union said concessioning such institutions could lead to their commercialisation and affect workers and students.
The disagreement therefore centres on the role KCOBA should play in the future of King’s College.
For the Old Boys, the concession provides a formal structure through which former students can mobilise resources and participate in rebuilding their alma mater.
For the PTA, the arrangement represents a change in the management of a public institution that requires greater consultation and safeguards for affordability and access.
The controversy has also drawn attention to the distinction between ownership and management.
KCOBA maintains that the Federal Government remains the owner of King’s College and that the concession is not a transfer of ownership. The parents, however, are questioning the extent of the association’s proposed management powers and the implications of the reported 35-year arrangement.
The questions surrounding fees, staff, governance, funding, infrastructure, accountability and the use of school facilities remain central to the dispute.
For an institution whose Old Boys include former heads of government institutions, judges, diplomats, businessmen, academics and political leaders, the disagreement has placed the alumni body itself at the centre of the school’s next chapter.
KCOBA says its objective is to restore the standards associated with the institution.
The PTA wants that restoration to remain firmly under public control.
As the two sides maintain their positions, the Federal Government’s response to the concerns raised by parents and the implementation of the approved concession will determine the next stage of the dispute.
