- Educationist Dr. Adebayo Oluwatosin urges Federal Government to abolish admission quota system and UTME due to failed policies
- Quota system criticized for disadvantaging poor students, professor suggests universities set their own admission policies; scholarships awarded
Dr Adebayo Oluwatosin, an educationist and African Regional President of the Scholarship Aid Initiative, has asked the Federal Government to abolish the admission quota system and the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME).
According to Oluwatosin, the government’s policies have completely failed citizens, particularly admission seekers.
He spoke on Friday in Abeokuta, Ogun State, at the Scholarship Aid Initiative’s 2023 stakeholders’ forum and award presentation.
The theme of the forum is “The Quota Policy in the Nigerian Educational System: A Determinant of Undergraduate Career Choice in Public and Private Universities.”
The NGO’s Africa Regional President blamed Nigeria’s admission crisis on the establishment of the Joint Admission and Matriculation Board (JAMB), “as the only government agency to control admission into tertiary institutions in Nigeria.”
He said;
In Nigeria today, the powerful people have made education difficult for the children of the poor man.
They have deprived these children an opportunity of gaining admission into higher institution because of unwarranted policies.
That is why we are agitating for it every year, that this quota system, the idea of JAMB saying university can’t admit more than 5,000 in one particular institution or 50 students in one particular department.
It is only in Nigeria that we are still using the quota system, it only in Nigeria that we are still using a unified examination body before admission into the university. Our leaders have traveled all over the world, if the quota system is what they are using there, will their children be opportune to gain admission into Harvard University, Oxford University? No.
That is why I said the of idea quota systems, the idea of UTME should be completely eradicated.
Azeez Olaniyan, a guest lecturer and Professor of Political Science at Federal University, Oye-Ekiti, agreed that the quota system should be reviewed by the Federal Government.
Olaniyan, the university’s Dean of the Faculty of Social Sciences, claimed that the quota system is unfair to admission seekers.
He believes that universities should be allowed to set their own admission policies.
Ms Oluwakemisola Aderoju, the Scholarship Aid Initiative’s Director of Program, stated that a total of 2,441 people have been shortlisted to receive the NGO’s scholarship for the year 2023.
She stated that the recipients came from all 50 states of the Federation.
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