Admit Students Beyond Quota Threshold, Face Sanctions, NUC Warns Varsities

The National Universities Commission (NUC) has reiterated its commitment to ensuring that no university in the country violates the regulations on admission carrying capacity.

In an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), the Acting Executive Secretary of the commission, Chris Maiyaki, stressed the importance of upholding standards in the Nigerian university education system.

Maiyaki stated that the commission would no longer tolerate illegal practices that could compromise the quality of education in the country.

The university quota system is a collaborative effort between the NUC and universities to propose and allocate carrying capacity. This involves determining the minimum academic standards and the appropriate ratio of teachers to students.

Acknowledging cases of over-admission, Maiyaki stressed that the NUC would take decisive action to address such situations.

He outlined two potential courses of action, including refusing to acknowledge students from violating institutions or requiring them to go through a formal reapplication process.

Recognizing the gravity of the issue, he noted the challenges of dealing with human lives, distinguishing the NUC’s responsibilities from agencies like NAFDAC that deal with tangible goods.

He said, “University quota system is the function of NUC in conjunction with the universities to propose and allocate the carrying capacity.

“We know the minimum academic standards, we know the ratio, that is, the full time equivalent between the teacher and the students.

“There had been cases of over admission and this should not be the case but when this happens we invoke the full wrath of the law.

“We can refuse to acknowledge those students or we ask them to go and formally apply, though it’s not easy because we are not like NAFDAC that destroy drugs but we are dealing with the lives of our children.

“Two things can happen, either you truncate their future or explore conciliatory arbitration so as to resolve the matter.

“We have always been very benevolent not to make them operate under circumstances that are defeating by nature; but to find a major ground between us and institutions.”

Maiyaki affirmed the NUC’s commitment to finding a balance between strict enforcement and conciliatory measures to resolve issues with institutions.

He noted the commission’s past efforts in sensitising universities and ongoing collaboration with the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) to eliminate irregularities in the system.

The Acting Executive Secretary expressed optimism about the intellectual and academic credibility of Nigerians, emphasising the goal of creating a society free from lawbreakers in the education sector.

“Nigerians are known for their intellectual and academic credibility and we will continue to moderate and regulate especially those who have the penchant for exceeding their quota.

“This is so that we can help to see a society where there are no law breakers, we will not allow illegality to becloud what has been adjudged to be one of the best education systems,” he told NAN