Posted by By Dapo Akinrefon on
THE Minister of Education, Mrs Chinwe Obaji has said that the ministry would sanction heads of institutions still operating satellite campuses in the country.
THE Minister of Education, Mrs Chinwe Obaji has said that the ministry would sanction heads of institutions still operating satellite campuses in the country.
Mrs Obaji who disclosed this during her working visit to the National Open University of Nigeria (NOUN) stated that the ministry of education would not fail to sanction any erring institution culpable of the act.
She then directed all agencies of the Ministry of Education which includes the National University Commission, NUC and the National Board for Technical Education, NBTE to report any head of institution still operating such campuses.
She said "I have to sound a note of warning to our universities and other institutions of higher learning that indulge in satellite campus operations, that all quality assurance agencies of Federal Ministry of Education that is, the NUC, NCCE and NBTE are hereby directed to deal seriously with heads of institutions still involved in outreach and/or satellite campuses as operating these satellite campuses are illegal. Such erring heads should be reported to the Ministry of Education for appropriate sanction"
The Education Minister further reaffirmed the Federal government‘s resolve to establish tertiary institutions that would meet the needs of the people.
"I must reaffirm government‘s commitment to the establishment of the university- the people's university- that meets the needs of our people and answers to the challenges of educating a developing country in the 21st century", she said.
While lauding the efforts of the National Open University of Nigeria, Mrs Obaji explained that her first visit to the university since assuming duty as Minister of Education was to "lend credence to the strong determination of the Federal government to provide cost-effective and flexible education to a very large majority of Nigerians".
In addition, she stated that "it is to find out if the processes of establishing the university is being followed and on the right course and also to find if there any issues inhibiting the smooth take-off of the university, as was mentioned to Mr President"
The education boss then assured the "teeming millions of current and would be students of NOUN that Mr President and the current administration are committed to the university and no stone would be left unturned in getting it fully supported and up and running"