On August 26, SaharaReporters reported that President Bola Tinubu’s administration mandated that only individuals aged 18 and above could take the National Examination Council Nigeria (NECO) and West African Examination Council (WAEC) exams.
Former Nigeria's Vice President, Atiku Abubakar, has denounced President Bola Tinubu's policy of pegging age limits for entry to tertiary institutions to 18 years, saying the policy belongs in the "stone ages".
On August 26, SaharaReporters reported that President Bola Tinubu’s administration mandated that only individuals aged 18 and above could take the National Examination Council Nigeria (NECO) and West African Examination Council (WAEC) exams.
The Minister of Education Prof. Tahir Mamman, who made announcement while featuring on Channels TV programme, had said that WAEC, which conducts the West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE), and NECO, which manages the Senior School Certificate Examination (SSCE), had been instructed to adhere to the 18-year age requirement for all exam candidates.
He highlighted that this was a reaffirmation of pre-existing regulations rather than a new policy.
The minister also noted that the age limit for the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME), overseen by the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB), remains at 18 years.
He stated, “It is 18 years, during our meeting with JAMB in July, we agreed to allow this year as a grace period for parents. This means that JAMB will admit students below 18 years old this year, but starting next year, the age requirement of 18 will be strictly enforced for university admissions in Nigeria.”
But reacting in a statement issued on Wednesday, Atiku, who was Presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the 2023 elections, described the policy as an "absurdity and a disincentive" to scholarship.
Atiku said that the policy contradicts the notion of delineation of responsibilities in a federal system of government as being practised in Nigeria, adding the policy indicates how President Tinubu's government behaves like a lost “sailor” on a high sea.
He said, "The policy runs foul of the notion of delineation of responsibilities in a federal system of government such as we are practising, and gives a graphic impression of how the Tinubu government behaves like a lost sailor on a high sea. Otherwise, how is such anti-scholarship regulation the next logical step in the myriad of issues besetting our educational system?
"To be clear, the Nigerian constitution puts education in the concurrent list of schedules, in which the sub-national government enjoys more roles above the federal government."
"Therefore, it is extra-constitutional for the federal government to legislate on education in a manner similar to a decree.
"The best global standard for such regulation is to allow the sub-national governments to make respective laws or rules on education."
He regretted that even while announcing this "obnoxious policy," the government inadvertently said it had no plan to cater for specially gifted pupils, a development he said was discouraging.
"That statement is an embarrassment to the body of intellectuals in the country because it portrays Nigeria as a country where gifted students are not appreciated.
"The irony here is that should the federal government play any role in education, it is to set up mechanisms that will identify and grant scholarships to gifted students not minding their ages before applying for admission into tertiary institutions.
"This controversial policy belongs in the Stone Ages and should be roundly condemned by everyone who believes in intellectual freedom and accessibility."