The Nigerian university system has declined over the years in terms of educational excellence. A prime factor for its continued sorry situation is the state-sanctioned quota system in which nepotism trumps merit. IYABO LAWAL writes that it’s time for the government to rejig the policy for the sake of posterity and development.

Oghenerukewve Akor, a young brilliant Nigerian, who was denied admission to read Medicine at the Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU), Ife, had a dream like every academically inclined Nigerian youth to go to a university.

Besides, every parent dreams that their children graduate from a good university to ensure that they have a better life than they did. That is a progressive situation except that the snag is everyone is facing what seems a dead end: the university quota system, where merit is an afterthought, not the main focus.

To bring you up to speed, young Akor had taken to social media to decry what the young scholar considered an injustice done to her by her fatherland, with OAU at the heart of the controversy.

Unusually, the university responded, not providing succour, to the outcry of Akor. The school affirmed that the young girl was not good enough to gain admission to study medicine.

The explanation was that with a score of 320, her mark from the Unified Tertiary Matriculation (UTME) amounted to 80 per cent (320/400 x 100); O’level result amounted to 70.3 per cent (44/64×100; English A1 (=8 marks); Biology C4 (=5 marks); Chemistry B3 (=6 marks); Maths B3 (=6 marks); Physics C4 (=5 marks); Physics C4 (=5 marks); Further Maths B2 (=7marks), and Civic Education A1 (=8 marks).

So, her overall average – as OAU did a combination of 50 percent mark from JAMB and 50 percent mark from her O’level equalled (80+70.3)=75.15 per cent, which the university rounded up to 75.2 per cent, leaving her ranking 103 on the list of the students who took medicine as first choice. Unfortunately for her, the total admission quota for medicine in OAU is 100.

The university, therefore, argued, “Although Akor did well, her mark was not good enough to earn her admission on merit to read medicine in OAU. Her mark of 75.2 per cent is clearly below our cut-off mark, which was initially 78 per cent, but later reduced to 77.7 per cent.”

The school pointed out that 56 other candidates scored higher than Akor, but could also not gain admission to study medicine.

Then, the institution touched on the raw nerves of many Nigerians when it reminded them of the Nigerian government’s enforcement of mediocrity in the name of unity.

Admission into Nigerian universities is considered on three grounds based on the nationally specified criteria: merit-45 per cent (this covers all candidates from the country, and it is automatic admission once you meet the cut-off mark); catchment-35 per cent; and educationally disadvantaged states (ELDS)-20 per cent.

The quota system and catchment areas are the federal government’s policies to bridge the gap between the educationally developed and less developed states, with several universities established nationwide to create equal opportunity for all candidates.

Despite that, both the federal and state governments have not been able to contend with the ever-rising demand for university education.

In a bid to ensure uniform development of the country’s educational sector, the federal government, over 25 years ago, formulated a policy of granting some preference to candidates seeking admission into universities nationwide, from states that are termed educationally less developed.

Most states of the north, and a few ones from the South-South and South-East, fall in this category. They include Bayelsa, Ebonyi, Jigawa, Zamfara, Adamawa, Bauchi, Benue, Borno, Cross River, Gombe, Jigawa, Kano, Kaduna, Katsina, Kebbi, Kogi, Kwara, Nasarawa, Niger, Plateau, Sokoto, Taraba and Yobe.

However, 25 years after the enactment and execution of the policy, stakeholders are still of the opinion that it is not yet time to stop, though a certain section of the populace think the policy is denying others who merit admission the opportunity to gain access into higher institutions of their choice.

A substantial number of would-be university students are turned away from the system.

About two-thirds of applicants who sat the country’s national entrance exam in 2023 could not get admission into a university.

According to data from the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organisation’s (UNESCO) Institute of Statistics, the number of Nigerian students abroad increased by 164 per cent in the decade between 2011 and 2022 alone, from 26,997 to 71,351.

The reason is apparent: it is easier for a camel to pass through a needle’s eye than for a Nigerian student to gain admission into a university in the country, leading to the proliferation of illegal universities.

At other times, Nigerian youths are forced to seek admission in universities in countries like the Republic of Benin, Togo, Ghana and even Chad.

According to data obtained from the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB), of the 6.9 million candidates that sat the UTME between 2019 and 2022, only 2.03 million of them were admitted into various institutions, while 4.87 million others failed to secure admission.

Among the 4.87 million candidates who failed to secure admission are 4,385 candidates who scored 300 and above out of the possible 400 score.

In 2019, of the 1.792 million candidates who sat the UTME, only 612,557 secured admissions, leaving out 1.180 million.

In 2020, out of 1.949m candidates, only 551,553 admission quotas were filled. This left 1.398m candidates without admission.

In 2021, out of 1.4 million candidates who sat the examination, only 312,666 were admitted, leaving out 1.087 million.

In 2022, out of 1.8 million candidates, only 557,625 slots were filled, as 1.242 million failed to secure admission.

The scenario reminds one of what happens in Unity Schools. A young girl from Anambra State seeking admission into any of Nigeria’s 104 Federal Government Colleges must score 139 points out of a possible 300 to stand a chance of admission. But her counterpart from Zamfara State only needs to guess two answers correctly.

Attempts to explain the necessity of this wide disparity in cut-off marks have come out hollow and trite.

Human rights lawyer and former President of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Olisa Agbakoba (SAN), had filed a suit at a federal high court in Lagos over admission inequality in Federal Government Colleges.

Agbakoba joined the Attorney General of the Federation and the Minister of Education as defendants in the suit, which sought a declaration that application of different cut-off marks for Unity Schools, based on gender, ethnicity and states of origin, is discriminatory and violates fundamental right to freedom from discrimination of candidates as guaranteed by the constitution.

Two years later, the court declared the decades-long state-based, quota system admission into federal government colleges unconstitutional.

To promote equity and national development, stakeholders in the education sector and seasoned administrators have called for a review of the quota system.

They noted that the quota system, as presently operated, is outdated and calls into question the nation-building objective of the country.

While arguing that the principle promotes illiteracy in the so-called educationally less developed areas, the experts maintained that the quota system must be periodically reviewed to promote merit and excellence.

A Professor of Political Science at Federal University, Oye Ekiti (FUOYE), Olaide Adewole, said that while there is nothing wrong with the principle of the quota system, it must be implemented in such a way that it does not undermine merit, both specifically and holistically.

Adewole lamented that the quota system has been implemented in such a way that calls into question the nation-building objective of the country.

He said, “I do not think the government has done enough to educate the citizenry on the essence of the policy and what objectives it is meant to serve. And so, oftentimes, youths who are denied placement in public schools despite their high scores are left wondering whether they belong to the same country as their colleagues who are given preferential treatment.

“The quota system is supposed to be a stop-gap measure; use it to bring up the disadvantaged, and thereafter, put a stop to it, and start treating everyone on the same standards.”

According to him, the space for the quota system must be a ‘very small’ percentage of the total number of spaces available, and in the listing of those to be accorded space through a quota system, the spaces should still go to the best in such groups.

He further suggested the quota system should be implemented in such a way that it would not give the slightest hint that it is a policy meant to reward ‘lazy ones.’

“It must be recognised as a temporary corrective measure, and not a permanent feature of the system,” he added.

To address the lopsidedness, Adewole called on the government at all levels to invest massively in basic and secondary education in the areas considered educationally disadvantaged.

He said the investment would involve expanding access through investment in educational infrastructures; training and retraining teachers; mobilising children of school age into school, and providing such education free.

“If we do all these, the concept of quota system in education would be seen to have served its original purpose; and within 10 years, no state or people would remain truly educationally disadvantaged. You can then begin to put everybody on the same pedestal of competitiveness and merit.”

On his part, Prof. Adebayo Adeyemi, a former Vice Chancellor of Bells University of Technology, Ota, expressed regret that the quota system has been misapplied.

To address the problem, the former university administrator canvassed the establishment of a national cut-off point for prospective students.

“I could recollect my serving as the admissions officer for the Faculty of Technology at the OAU between 1986 and 1991; admissions were based on the quota system. At that time, I think it was based on the following parameters: merit (40 per cent), catchment (30 per cent), educationally disadvantaged states (20 per cent) and discretion (10 per cent).

“Pass mark at that time was 200 to gain admission into Nigerian universities. At no time did we go below the minimum pass mark, regardless of the group a candidate belonged to.”

Adeyemi believed that if and when proactive steps are taken, the so-called educationally disadvantaged states will rub shoulders with their educationally advantaged counterparts.

While describing the intention as noble, Prof Austin Oguama of the University of Nigeria, Nsukka (UNN), expressed regret that the beneficiaries have taken what ordinarily should be a privilege as a right.

Oguama said the quota system has outlived its usefulness and should be phased out.

According to him, the system is giving undue advantage to some people, promoting complacency and mediocrity on the part of the beneficiaries.