Representatives to investigate the
discriminatory cut-off marks for
admissions into Federal Government
Colleges (FGCs) has renewed the debate
about the elevation of the federal
character principle above merit. The issue
also raises a question on whether some
states are really educationally
disadvantaged.
Though the admissions policy of the 104
Federal Government Colleges (FGCs), also
known as Unity Schools, has been in
existence for over 40 years, concerns
about the discriminatory cut-off marks for
states have always been a contentious
issue. Many parents find it difficult to
believe that their children who did well in
the National Common Entrance
Examination (NCEE) may not be admitted
because of where they come from, while
those with "ridiculously" low marks are
admitted because they are from
"educationally disadvantaged" states.
Last week, Hon Afam Ogene, who
represents Anambra State in the House of
Representatives, Abuja, drew the
attention of his colleagues to this anomaly
during plenary.
To gain admission into the Unity Schools,
the cut-off mark system requires
candidates from states in the Southeast,
Southwest to score significantly higher
marks than their counterparts from the
North or those states tagged
"educationally-less-developed states
(ELDS) in the NCEE conducted by the
National Examinations Council (NECO).
For instance, while candidates from
Anambra State must score at least 139,
which is the highest for any state, those
from Jigawa need 44 marks to qualify for
admission into the colleges. Yobe has the
lowest cut-off, two. Other states with low
cut-off marks are: Taraba (3), Zamfara (4),
Kebbi (9) and Sokoto (9).
To be representational of Nigeria as
conceived by Gen Yakubu Gowon when
the Unity Schools were started in the 60s,
each college admits based on the
following criteria: 30 per cent on merit;
30 per cent, state quota; 30 per cent,
environment; and 10 per cent exigency.
Explaining the quota policy, the Principal
of King's College, Lagos, Otunba Dele
Olapeju, said the 30 per cent admitted on
merit can gain admission into the colleges
of their choice, irrespective of their states
of origin if they excel well above the cut-
off mark of their states. He said the state
quota criterion requires the colleges to
select 30 per cent of their candidates
from each state of the federation; while
the environment criterion is reserved for
candidates from the host state/
community of the college. The 10 per
cent criterion is based on exigencies.
Nigerians are divided on the propriety of
the discriminatory cut-off marks policy.
While many told The Nation that the
policy should be abolished because it
does not allow for a level-playing field,
others favour it because of the
opportunity it provides for children from
educationally backward states.
Olapeju said contrary to belief, candidates
from the North with poor scores are not
admitted into the college.
"What we do in selecting candidates
admitted on state and environmental
bases is to pick those with the best
scores that applied from each state. None
of the candidates scored zero," he said.
Unused slots
Though the state admissions criterion
stipulates that pupils be admitted from
every state, this is not always the case.
Many pupils no longer travel a far
distance to attend Unity Schools. Many
favour schools nearby. As a result, some
states do not fill their quota.
Dr. Ahmaad Rufai of the Faculty of
Education, Lagost State University (LASU)
describes the unused slots as 'educational
wastage.'
"How could you just allocate slots which
are hardly utilised to some sections of the
country where there are others who are
eligible but can't just fill them because of
the prevailing quota system? It is simply a
way of compromising standards and giving
room to mediocres," he said.
Despite the cut-off marks favouring
northerners, a group, Tambarin Arewa
Development Association in Lagos, is
complaining that pupils from the North
are denied access to the Unity Schools as
their quotas are given to southerners. In
a statement signed by Mustapha Ibrahim
Mai-Gandi, the group said: "The merit
quota is usually taken by up candidates of
southern states due to their educational
advantage. However, northern states are
equally short- changed under the state
quota criterion that is supposed to be
shared among the 36 states based on
their cut-off marks. It is discovered that
most of the students admitted under this
criterion are from the South.
"It is very common and amazing to see
Ikechukwu or Adewunmi or Esther taking
up the Sokoto or Yobe State slots whereas
the said candidates have no link
whatsoever with those states. An
example of this anomaly can be seen in
the admission list of Queen's College and
King's College, Lagos over the last six or
seven years. In fact, this year's admission
into the two schools both at JS & SS levels
points to the same direction.
"As regards the issue of merit quota, we
equally discovered that some candidates
from the North are equally shortchanged
under this criterion after meeting the
merit quota requirement. A typical
example is the case of a JS1 candidate
from Kebbi State (Nasiru Munira Aisha)
who scored 165 marks out of 200 in the
Common Entrance Examination.
"With this result, such candidate clearly
qualifies for the merit list, but instead she
was offered admission under Kebbi State
quota slot at Queen's College. This clearly
stops other qualified candidates from
Kebbi to make the state quota. In fact,
we have candidates from the same Kebbi
State that met the State Quota
requirement but were not offered
admission as a result of this.
"We are of the opinion that even if those
states affected did not fill any candidate
for such examination or do not meet the
admission requirement, their slots could
be filled by other qualified candidates
from their zone or other means of filling
their slots other than quota will be
found," it said.
Reacting to the group's claims, Olapeju
said parents from other parts of the
country fill in northern states for their
children to take advantage of the low cut-
off marks and gain admission. He said the
issue is tricky and requires the school to
be careful because of constitutional
provisions that allow them to claim a
state where they were born as theirs.
"This issue can be very tricky because of
the constitutional provision that if
someone has lived in a state for long and
had all his children there, he can claim
the place as the state of origin.
"Some parents use this trick. They claim
other states for their children because of
the low cut-off marks," he said.
However, he said efforts are made to
determine whether the pupils are really
from the states they claim.
Proponents of cut-off mark policy
Chairman of the King's College Parent-
Teacher Association (PTA) Mr Emmanuel
Oriakhi said the cut-off mark issue is
exaggerated. Like Olapeju, he said nobody
is admitted from educationally-
disadvantaged states with poor scores.
He said the number admitted on this
basis is negligible and should not be made
an issue.
He said the Federal Character principle
has to exist for the schools to fulfil the
purpose of admitting pupils from all
states. This notwithstanding, he said, it
does not affect merit.
"This idea of the cut-off mark is being
misrepresented. People are now looking
at the extremes – like comparing a
candidate who scored 130 to one who
scored zero. There is nothing like a
candidate with two marks. There has to
be differential grades because of the
Federal Character principle. That does not
mean that merit is being jeopardised. The
number of those admitted from these
zones is insignificant. For instance,
nobody that scores less than 100 from
any state is admitted at King's College.
Nobody can be admitted on the cut-off
mark of two. The cut-off mark for any
state is about 160 and above. But there is
usually concession for those from
educationally-less developed states," he
said.
If the goal of admitting pupils from all
over Nigeria is to be achieved, Olapeju
said merit cannot be the sole criterion as
performance in the NCEE has consistently
shown that candidates from some states
outperformed others.
"For instance, in the last examination, out
of 6,000 candidates that made the
national cut-off, Anambra State had the
lion's share. Between Imo and Anambra,
they took a sixth of the national merit.
You cannot blame them for being
brilliant. However, if all Anambra
candidates are admitted, there will be no
Unity Colleges," he said.
The renewed interest in the policy after
so many years came as a surprise to some
people. At the Federal Government Girls
College (FGGC) in Abuloma, Rivers State,
the principal refused to speak on the
issue. However, a worker said: "These
press people are always looking for
someone to sack from work. Is it today
that that policy came up? I wonder why
they are just realising that that policy is
very discriminatory. It has been there
and if our people have been tolerating it
all these years why are they agitating
against it now."
Mrs Pat Kodu, who retired from one of
the colleges, also wondered at the
interest.
She asked: "Why are our people just
raising eyebrows against this policy now?
It was put in place when the Unity
Schools were established and nobody
carried placards against it then. Why
now?"
Many parents, teachers and stakeholders
are satisfied with the discriminatory
cutoff arrangement as they believe it
allows those who would ordinarily not
have entered the colleges to gain
admission.
A parent who refused to be named and
whose child attends one of the schools in
Sokoto, said what favoured his child for
admission was the environmental factor.
"I am from Edo State by origin and I
happen to give birth to all my children in
Sokoto where I have stayed for over 30
years. This is what qualified my child to
secure admission, despite the cut off
marks of my state," he said.
Hon Ogene may be miffed that Anambra
candidates have to work harder, but to
Governor Peter Obi, it is evidence that
the state is doing well educationally.
Speaking at the distribution of N2.53
billion rehabilitation grant to all public
schools, Obi said the good performance
was evidence that reforms in public and
missionary schools as well as private
schools made Anambra pupils come tops
in the NCEE.
Chief Abdulsalam Suleiman, Chairman,
FGC, Sokoto Parent-Teacher Association
(PTA), believes that the policy is not
meant to discriminate but to correct the
inequality in the standard of education as
well as discourage the existing gap
nationwide.
He said rather than dwell on the
discriminatory policy, stakeholders should
fast-track development in disadvantaged
states by providing adequate and
necessary facilities and qualified
manpower in schools to make the system
more attractive and competitive.
"I believe a committee was set up to
advise the government before the policy
was enforced. It is not meant to punish
others. We are all Nigerians and no
section of the country will want to remain
at a disadvantage. It is for the good of the
country", he said.
Alhaji Muhammed Ahmed, Chairman,
School-Based Management Committee,
FGGC, Bakori, Kaduna State, and a retired
Director of Education, described the
policy as logical, considering the North/
South education development divide.
"We have several FGCs across the
country. As you know, Nigeria is a federal
structure with differences in educational
attainment. I think it is logical based on
Federal Character to relate the
performance of say Kwara State with that
of Borno State. For example, western
education started in Badagry in 1841,
while in the North here, western
education started in 1907. Study the
difference. So, that cut off mark is logical
and fair. You cannot compare the
performance of a child in Katsina or Jigawa
state with a child in Lagos. There is a big
difference and so, I think it is fair to
reduce the cut off mark. The student who
is coming with a low performance should
strive to catch up with others when he
gets to school and ask many questions
while trying to identify the intelligence in
him," he said.
Though not a fan of the Federal Character
principle, Vice-Chancellor of the Sokoto
State University Prof Nuhu Yaqub said the
admissions policy should remain to help
the goal of unifying Nigeria.
Opponents of the cut-off mark policy
For those who dislike the policy, they
argue that it promotes mediocrity. They
said despite favouring ELDS for decades,
those states are yet to develop
educationally.
Former Commissioner for Justice and
Attorney-General of Edo State Dr. Osagie
Obayuwana said the cut-off mark policy,
like the federal character principle, only
complicates Nigeria's problems.
He said: "We must not throw merit
overboard in attaining federal character.
We cannot continue to use federal
character to assure people of access. The
incentive must be provided for people to
strive and excel. The system suffers when
mediocrity turns out to be the product of
our educational processes. Those who are
given preferential consideration as far as
admission is concerned ought to
appreciate they are going to meet
challenges and they have some catching
up to do so that we are not faced with a
situation when somebody gets admission
on a quota basis, they will be among the
first to get appointment on quota basis.
There is no doubt that part of the
challenges Nigeria faces at the moment is
mediocrity rule traceable to quota and
federal character business."
For Njom Nyambi, Chairman, Nigeria
Union of Teachers (NUT) Cross River State
wing, ELDS do not exist, so, the cut-off
should be jettisoned.
"The people are just trying to be funny.
There is no educationally disadvantaged
state. All these pupils are the same. The
situation is just like depriving some
people of their rights and if the Unity
schools should have an admissions policy
it should be uniform throughout the
country. They should not give priority to
some people and some other people are
treated as if they are second class
citizens. I feel it is not fair on some pupils
who have to study so hard to score high
marks to gain admission while some other
pupils elsewhere just get through for
scoring very low marks. Today, there are
so many professors in the North and they
are still calling them disadvantaged
states. It is not correct. Everyone should
be treated on the same pedestal for the
sake of unity," he said.
The FGC, Sokoto PTA Chairman, Chief
Suleiman, also pointed out that there is
no scientific proof to the term
"educationally disadvantaged", describing
the term as derogatory. The issue, he
said, had been given political status rather
then academic, arguing that many
northerners have performed well
academically.
"It is to a large extent derogatory to peg a
cut off mark as low as nine for a state
against others with 130 as entry mark
into Unity Schools. Even in the North,
Sokoto in particular has produced the
world's best automobile designer, Jelani
Aliyu, who went through the conventional
public school. People like Prof Ardo, a
Special Adviser to Governor Wamakko
attended University of Benin (UNIBEN);
Prof Jibril Aminu won almost all prizes as a
mathematician during his days in the
university. It is just like the hierarchy of
social or class status where we have the
rich, middle and the lower classes. The
last two categories will want to strive
through available means to belong to the
top for development", he said.
Constance Meju, a journalist, who once
taught in a Unity School, said the policy
should be scrapped because if all these
years the people from the North and
other educationally-disadvantaged states
have not been able to catch up, it means
they do not appreciate the gesture.
Former Commissioner for Education in
Kaduna State Matamaki Tom Maiyashi
believes that the segregation in cut-off
point for entry into the colleges is just a
way of scoring cheap political points by
politicians and those saddled with the
responsibility of running the educational
system. Maiyasho believes that the policy
will erode the principle surrounding the
establishment of the Unity Schools.
"The concept of Unity Schools emerged
post Nigeria civil war. At that time, the
question of unity was paramount because
we were seeking ways of uniting the
country and the school socialisation
system was considered vital in that
regard. It was thought that if you bring
youths from across the country, their
interaction as they grow together, they
will look at Nigeria from a broader
perspective. That was the cardinal
principle of establishing Unity Schools. At
that time, the standard was quite high
and if you go back and look at the first
and second generation products of those
schools, you will understand. What has
happened over time is deliberate. The
unity of Nigeria is paramount and that
should guide your principle of maintaining
standard. Right now, the standard has
fallen and you are even dealing with a
mess and even if you segregate, you are
really pushing these children into a mess
because the standard is not there," he
said.
A teacher, Johnson Kalu, who teaches in
Umuahia, the Abia State capital, described
the policy as one of the ways the North is
trying to destroy the education system,
adding that they can never catch up with
other parts of the country educationally
through this means.
Kalu said when other states were busy
educating their children and building
schools, the people of the North were
busy doing other things. "What this
means is that people from the South will
go to the North and fill up their quota for
them, you cannot stop the people from
the south from going to school under any
guise," he said.
He condemned Tambuwal for not
agreeing to Ogene's suggestion that the
Federal Ministry of Education should be
asked to suspend the obnoxious
admission policy which is not in the best
interest of the country.
A parent from Abia State, Mr Uka Isaac,
knows his child who took the examination
would have it tough given the high cut-
off. He said the policy will not stop the
South from outperforming the North.
"There is nothing they will do that would
make them to stop the people from the
southern part of the country from going
to school; the least they will do is to
make us to put our children in private
schools. You do not expect me to ask my
child to sit at home for another year just
because of one stupid government policy,
which is designed to make us wait for
people who will never catch up with us
educationally, even if we wait for another
10 years for them to catch up."
A parent in Akwa Ibom State, Mrs. Uduak
Effiong, whose daughter, Blessing, is
seeking admission into FGC, Ikot Ekpene,
is also angry about the disparity cut-off
marks.
"For instance, how could the Federal
Ministry of Education apportion 123 cut-
off marks to male and female pupils from
Akwa Ibom State while Zamfara State is
given four marks for males and two for
females? It is an injustice and it must be
corrected by federal lawmakers," she
said.
In his reaction, the Programme Director
of Centre for Environment, Human Rights
and Development, Rivers State, Mr Steve
Obodoekwe, said the policy encourages
disunity.
"The people who made that policy should
bury their faces in shame because how
can you justify the fact that a pupil from
Anambra State is supposed to score as
high as 139 to gain admission while his or
her counterpart from Yobe State only has
to score two marks to get the same
admission.
"The policy was put in place to enable the
so-called educationally disadvantaged
states to catch up with the Igbo who are
considered naturally sharp and
hardworking. But over the years, these
educationally disadvantaged states
instead of catching up are retrogressing
and so the best thing is for the
government to scrap it and let us have a
uniform admission policy. "
What does the future hold?
Last week, Tambuwal directed the House
Committee on Education, chaired by Hon
Aminu Suleiman, to investigate the cut-off
and quota system used for admission of
pupils into the colleges.
When The Nation asked Hon Suleiman
about the investigation when he visited
Lagos for the stakeholders' forum
organised by NECO, last Friday, he
declined comments on the committee's
findings.
"What the House did was to raise an
observation based on complaints received
from members of the general public. And
I have been mandated to go and find out
and report back to the House; therefore,
I am handicapped now. I cannot discuss
on this issue since I am basically
responsible for the investigation. I won't
let the cat out of the bag yet," he said.
Source : the nation
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