There are plenty of good reasons for a
young person to enlist in the ‘army’ to fight the war in the four walls of a
university.
Some of such reasons are intellectual growth,
career opportunities among others. Of course, fun cannot be divorced from the
excessive freedom one derived from being a student in tertiary institutions.
But the danger is that most students are unable to control their feelings in
the flight of fancy as they chose to gallivant on campus and refuse to be
committed to the fight to acquire a sound degree. These students most often
become easy prey for cult activities.
In order not to put the school in bad light and to nip the infectious lackadaisical virus-attitude in the bud before it spreads onto serious students, the institutions’ authorities usually find a way to ease such students out of the school system.
Notwithstanding the
above, the hurdles and humiliation candidates undergo in pursuit of admission
into Nigeria’s tertiary
institutions is to say the least, incomprehensible and disheartening. “It is
easier for the head of a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than (my
words) for qualified candidates to gain admission into universities.”
Over the years,
millions of youngsters have paid a high price in their quest for excellence and
gaining admission into the nation’s tertiary institutions that can only
accommodate a few thousand.
As it is often said
by its officials, government is absolutely keen and serious about providing
education for its young population because it sees education as a means to
boost social mobility and economic growth. Good talk. It is even a globally
acknowledged fact that educated people are more likely to come up with
productivity –boosting innovations.
However, with all
these facts about education as the engine which drives the economy of a nation,
one wonders why Nigeria’s government seems to turn a blind eye and ignore
the pyramid of obstacles to candidates gaining admission into the universities.
Every year, the
number of candidates who apply to write the Joint Admission and Matriculation
Board (JAMB) examinations will amaze anyone who chooses to scrutinise the list.
But, what will actually take one’s breath away and shock to bone marrow is the
number of qualified candidates who actually passed JAMB but were denied
admission. This is very sad for a country like Nigeriain this age and
time.
According to this
newspaper’s report, an amazing figure of, 197,050 qualified candidates were
denied admission this year from only seven sampled universities. Yet,
government and its officials have no tangible reason for this. Hear this wonky
defence from JAMB’s image maker: “It was not within the powers of the board to
determine what happens to a candidate not admitted into any institution.
Besides, we don’t roll over candidates. It is the right of candidates to apply.
However, what we have
succeeded in doing is to monitor admission closely, a development that has led
more candidates being admitted this year.” What this, therefore, implies, is
that candidates are seen by JAMB as cash machine. Therefore, they should
continue to waste their parents hard earned money and of course, their precious
time in burning the midnight ‘candle’ light studying for the examination.
This ugly phenomenon
has forced many youngsters to deviate and indulge in criminal vices. While
majority decides to study just any course in the university provided they will
acquire a degree at the end of the day. This should be quickly checked because
obtaining just any degree is not always the best measure of skills and
knowledge acquisition needed for a job when one graduates.
In a way, degrees are
now used by some employers of labour as signalling device to access a position
that benefits one person at the expense of another. Yet, in most cases, the
person who benefits may not be able to perform optimally in the job.
In any case, one
needs not envy undergraduates because there is this ugly development they
suffer regularly in the course of their studies. Across the country, students
of tertiary institutions are usually unsure of their graduation date. This is
because of incessant strike actions by the Academic Staff Union of Universities
(ASUU) and its sister body the Non Academic Staff Union (NASU). At the end of
the day half-baked graduates emerge to handle critical positions in the
country. The big worry, therefore, is whether this phenomenon is seen by government
as a national threat and a time bomb waiting to explode!
In the meantime,
government and its officials should consider the danger before the country as
the young population remains absent-minded and helpless due to the rules that
mess up admission into the universities. Therefore, government should see
reasons to expand admission capacity of existing universities and establish new
ones in line with the economic, industrial and development needs of the
country. This will not only cater for the teeming young population seeking
admission yearly but, also, give young people hope and a sense of brighter
future.
Furthermore,
policymakers and indeed, government should have an open mind to critically look
into these lapses. It will not only benefit all but offer efficient manpower
base if government should provide young people with a wider range of options
and even opportunities to be trained in vocational skills. This will
tremendously help to demonstrate their employability both in the private or
public sector. It is not enough to pay lip-service to the benefits derived from
agriculture without empowering and making the atmosphere conducive for the
young people to embrace it.
Also, it is important
for government to equip the nation’s agricultural institutions and research
centres in order to encourage research that will boost the economy through
agriculture.
It is important to
note that the Nigerian youth is tired of fighting to enter the university,
tired of being denied admission having passed JAMB and can no longer endure the
pains of the aftermath. A nation that systematically disallows its youth from
learning or acquiring skills is a nation without a future.
By Matthew Ozah
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