I have tried to highlight the tragic condition of our Universities in Nigeria. The entrance of private Universities is a welcome development. However, NUC must become more vigilant in how these Universities deal with issues of national integration, regional and ethnic chauvinism and how these institutions contribute to the ideals of national unity. To do this, the NUC must try to lead the way by providing standards for the choice of members of the various layers of authority in the Universities. I want to conclude by making the following observations.
Is the current quota system in the Nigerian public university system undermining the public sector higher education in favour of private universities which are not required to adhere to it? This is an increasingly topical debate in federal Nigeria, where the quota system – in operation since its inclusion in the constitution in 1979 – affects all public institutions across the country, including public universities, governing not only student admissions, but staff recruitment, appointments and promotions. The debate was re-opened in December last year when Nigerian Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo was reported to have emphasised the importance of merit. At the conferment of the Nigerian National Order of Merit Award on two professors – environmental scientist Omowunmi Sadiq and poet Tanure Ojaide – he reportedly said the nation had placed quota before merit which “we know does not work”. While originally intended to address differences in socio-economic and educational development am
Vice-Chancellors of private universities have expressed great concern and sympathy for Nigerian students whose careers are currently being threatened by the face-off between the Federal government and ASUU which has kept them at home for over three months, noting that there is an urgent need to end the ongoing strike for the good of the nation.
The Madonna University Alumni Association has urged the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) to soft-pedal on its threat to massively clamp down on private universities in the country as a result of the ongoing strike by the Academic Staff Union, (ASUU).
Nigerian university students have united under the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) and have protested in the streets of Ado Ekiti, Ekiti State’s capital, demanding that the federal government yield to the demands of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU).
The advent of private universities in Nigeria was considered a welcome development for the simple reason that the public universities had become anything but centres for excellence. Aside the endless strikes by the lecturers and the non-academic staff which sometimes lasted as long as one academic session, the neglect of federal and state universities by successive governments has also resulted in a situation in which students of these universities were never certain as to the number of years they would spend for their degrees.
The National Universities Commission (NUC), urged the Standing Committee on Private Universities (SCOPU) not to compromise standards in the discharge of its duties.