The cut-off points released by the Federal Ministry of Education for admission into the 104 unity schools have raised agitation for the abolition of federal character principle in admission process in the country, SEGUN OLUGBILE reports.
Stakeholders, including state governments, parents and pupils have called on the Federal Government to abolish the federal character principle in the admission of candidates into the 104 unity schools in the country. They also described as discriminatory the cut-off marks for admission into the institutions, as released by the Federal Ministry of Education. They argued that the cut-off structure was skewed in favour of candidates from some states in the North. This, they said, is retrogressive, promotes mediocrity and kills excellence.
The call came against the backdrop of the release of the controversial cut-off points, which some Nigerians have criticised for promoting mediocrity above excellence. Observers are of the opinion that the decision, as made by the FME, highlights the disadvantage of the quota system embedded in the federal character principle. Some of these disadvantages, they argued, include the denial of admission to better qualified candidates and foisting of emotional trauma on pupils unduly denied admission.
In the cut off released by FME, a pupil from Anambra State, irrespective of gender, is expected to score at least 139 to gain admission into the schools, while his counterpart from Yobe and Zamfara States is required to score only two marks out of a possible 200. The cut-off point also showed discrimination between male and female students in some states.
For instance, while a male candidate from Yobe State will be admitted for scoring only two marks out of a possible 300, a female candidate requires 27 to gain admission into the same school. For Taraba, it is three for male and 11 for female; while it is nine against 20 in favour of male in Kebbi State.
Also, when a candidate of Lagos State origin is expected to score 133 before he or she could be considered for admission into a unity school for the 2013/2014 academic session, those from Bornu State only need to score 45 to gain admission. Candidates from Osun State are expected to score 127 to get admission into a unity school. (See Table)
But disturbed by the adoption of the federal character principle in the admission process, the stakeholders, including the Anambra State Government have risen in opposition to the policy.
For instance, the Anambra State Government said on Thursday that the high cut-off mark allocated to candidates from the state was not acceptable.
The state’s Commissioner for Education, Dr Uju Okeke, made the disclosure in Awka in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria.
Okeke said that the state was not comfortable with the cut-off point imposed on candidates from there, arguing that the high mark amounted to denying children from Anambra equal access to the unity schools.
“The cut-off mark for Anambra is too high. I do not know the criteria but it is not acceptable to us. It is injustice.
“Making Anambra child to score 139 points in an examination some other states are expected to score as low as four points, nine points, and 12 points is not just.
“It puts so many tasks on them, and it does not encourage fair competition which engenders equal development of the Nigerian child.
“We shall register our protest about it with the Federal Ministry of Education in Abuja during our seminars,’’ she said.
Also, parents, including Mr. Sao Joseph, a native of Badagry, Lagos State, and Mr Igandan Adedamola from Ekiti State, argued that it was high time the Federal Government did away with the policy if it was serious about transforming the nation.
“You cannot transform a nation when mediocrity is being promoted. Why should a child who obtained 125 be denied admission and somebody that scored 45 is preferred? That is not fairness. That is telling that child that he or she is a second-class citizen in his country. It is not fair. That policy must be eliminated from our law books, it has outlived its usefulness,” Sao said.
Also, the Vice-Chancellor, Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, Osun State, Prof. Bamitale Omole, shared a similar view. But he added that not just in admission into unity schools that the federal character policy should no longer be used. It should also be abolished in appointments and employment contexts.
Though Adedamola expressed a similar view, he added that all the tiers of government in the country should devise other means of encouraging Nigerian children to have sound education.
“The present system does not encourage healthy competition requires for national development. States and local governments should invest more in basic education because if they have done this, no candidate would perform so poorly to such an extent that some candidates obtained just two marks over 200, it is bad. Their government should take the blame for this,” he said.
However, a principal of one of the unity schools in the South West, who pleaded anonymity, argued that the policy was not new.
“It’s been on for so many years. Admission into unity schools is done through national merit, state of origin merit, catchment area and educational disadvantaged states modes. So, after the quota is drawn, each state is expected to fill its quota. A state can be given 250, slots for instance, and in filling the slots, a merit list will be drawn for candidates from such a state based on performance of its indigenes before other modes are considered. But there are years that some of these states with low cut-off marks would not even have enough candidates to fill their slots, so any indigene of such a state will automatically be offered admission.
However, the principal, who is also not happy with the policy, said there was nothing the ministry could do about it since it’s a law.
“But I can only appeal to state and local governments to re-engineer basic education through massive funding, recruitment of qualified teachers who should be well motivated and encourage children to learn,” he added.
Some of the candidates also expressed worries about the policy that would deny them admission when they are qualified to be admitted.
But the Special Assistant (Media) to the Minister of State for Education, Mr. Simeon Nwakaudu, has defended the policy. He said there was no ill-motive behind the cut-off points as “the reason the schools were established in the first place was for unity.”
The Federal Government, he said, designed the policy in order to accommodate children from educationally disadvantaged states to have the opportunity of being educated.
“The Federal Government designed this policy because of the need to make quality education accessible to all Nigerians irrespective of ethnic and geographical locations,” a top source at the ministry said.
