Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has criticized the federal government’s directive that bars candidates under the age of 18 from gaining admission into tertiary institutions.
Atiku expressed his disapproval through a statement on his Facebook page, describing the policy as an “absurdity” and a “disincentive to scholarship.”
Atiku further criticized President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s administration, likening it to a “lost sailor on a high sea” for implementing such a policy. He emphasized that the regulation contradicts the principles of federalism as outlined in the Nigerian constitution, which places education on the concurrent list, allowing sub-national governments more autonomy in educational matters.
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“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?” Atiku stated.
This reaction follows a recent directive by the Minister of Education, Tahir Mamman, who announced that tertiary institutions should not admit candidates under the age of 18. Mamman explained that the 18-year benchmark aligns with Nigeria’s 6-3-3-4 educational system. He argued that students younger than 18 are often too immature to handle the transition from a controlled to an uncontrolled environment, such as a university setting.
Mamman stated, “The minimum age of entry into the university is 18, but we have seen students who are 15, 16 years going in for the entrance examination… This is the period when children migrate from controlled to uncontrolled environment; when they are in charge of their own affairs. But, if they are too young, they won’t be able to manage properly.”
In his response, Atiku highlighted the absence of provisions for exceptionally gifted students under the new policy. He described this as “an embarrassment to the body of intellectuals in the country” and called for the policy to be condemned.
“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,” Atiku added. He urged those who value intellectual freedom and accessibility to reject the policy, which he deemed outdated and regressive.
