The Association of Vice-Chancellors of Nigerian Universities (AVCNU) has stated that the Minister of Education’s pronouncement did not take away a university’s right to select its students as the law empowers its Senate to screen applicants before admission.
It would be recalled that the Education Minister, Mallam Adamu Adamu, during the JAMB policy meeting with stakeholders, announced the scrapping of the post-UTME screening exercise organized by tertiary institution.
The Secretary-General of the Vice-Chancellors association, Prof Michael Faborode, who was the guest speaker at the 11th convocation lecture of Covenant University last Thursday, said the minister did not consult with stakeholders before banning the post-Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME).
He said: “AVCNU does not feel that we should make a public pronouncement on the issue. Remember, when the minister made that, he also said there would be clarification on how the screening would be done.
“But for us, the issue is very clear. Remember, Post-UTME came out of necessity because at the time, the level of Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) exam was seriously questioned. It is true that things have improved to some extent; but I feel the minister’s pronouncement should have been more consultative and we would have conducted studies to verify the present situation like we did when we started post-UTME.
“But why we feel there was no need for outcry is that the fundamental right of universities to conduct screening cannot be taken away. The Senate of every university must screen whoever comes into the university and must guarantee the quality of certificate they are awarding. These are fundamental tasks that still remain and have not been threatened”, he said.
