Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has strongly criticized the recent policy announced by the Federal Ministry of Education, which sets 18 years as the minimum age for admission into tertiary institutions.
Atiku expressed his disapproval on his social media platform, X (formerly Twitter), describing the policy as misguided and detrimental to educational development in Nigeria.
He compared the actions of President Bola Tinubu’s administration to a “lost sailor on a high sea,” implying a lack of direction and understanding in addressing the nation’s educational challenges.
The former Vice President contended that the policy contradicts the principles of a federal system of government, where responsibilities are shared between the federal and sub-national governments.
He said: “The recent policy of the Federal Ministry of Education pegging age limits for entry to tertiary institutions is an absurdity and a disincentive to scholarship.
“The policy runs foul of the notion of delineation of responsibilities in a federal system of government such as we are pratising, 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?
“To be clear, the Nigerian constitution puts education in the concurrent list of schedules, in which the sub-national government enjoys more roles above the federal government.
“Therefore, it is extra-constitutional for the federal government to legislate on education in a manner similar to a decree.
“The best global standard for such regulation is to allow the sub-national governments to make respective laws or rules on education.
“It is discouraging that even while announcing this obnoxious policy, the government inadvertently said it had no plan to cater for specially gifted pupils. That statement is an embarrassment to the body of intellectuals in the country because it portrays Nigeria as a country where gifted students are not appreciated.
“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.
“This controversial policy belongs in the Stone Ages and should be roundly condemned by everyone who believes in intellectual freedom and accessibility.”
