The Commissioner for Health in Ogun State, Dr. Olaokun Soyinma, has said two applicants into the Ogun State School of Nursing, Ilaro have been nabbed for impersonation and handed over to the police for prosecution.
The commissioner who stated this in Abeokuta, yesterday, said the names of the suspects would be withheld.
He said they were caught by the officials of the ministry during the auditing of newly admitted students for 2013/2014 academic session.
Soyinka claimed that during an interrogation, one of them confessed to the crime, while the other was adamant, adding that the duo would forfeit their offers.
According to him, they were caught replacing the passport photographs of the mercenaries cellotaped to the admission letter with theirs.
He said: “The ministry is tightening its procedures because of rampant examination malpractices. The suspects were caught by the officials of the ministry during the auditing of newly admitted students for 2013/2014 academic session.
“In the process, two candidates whose records throughout the admission exercise showed them to be male students, applied for female hostel accommodation.
“The students perpetrated the act by replacing the passport photographs of the mercenary cellotaped to the admission letter with theirs.”
The students’ first names were those that are commonly used by either gender.”
The commissioner, however, affirmed that the state government has zero tolerance for examination fraud and malpractices as it is determined to raise the standard of healthcare personnel.
“Senator Ibikunle Amosun’s administration is determined to raise the standard of healthcare personnel. This starts at the training stage where we must ensure the best candidates are selected. We will not tolerate fraud”, the Commissioner said.