It’s time to review educational qualification for political offices, says…

House of Representatives Speaker Femi Gbajabiamila has called for constitutional review of the educational qualification of public office holders from secondary school certificate.

Gbajabiamila spoke yesterday while delivering the 52nd convocation lecture of the University of Lagos (UNILAG), titled: Building Back Better: Creating a New Framework for Tertiary Education in Nigeria in the 21st Century.

The Speaker explained that his suggestion was in tandem with the general agitation for quality education in the country.

He said: “Towards the 2023 elections, it was my hope that a direct primary election method will increase greater participation in the leadership recruitment process, as we are faced with diverse opinions on the way forward.

“I also sincerely believe that the National Assembly needs to look into Section 131 (d) of the 1999 Constitution with a view to increasing the minimum educational qualification for persons aspiring to be Presidents of Nigeria and other top offices, including the National Assembly, as against the current minimum educational requirement.”

On the funding of tertiary education, Gbajabiamila said there was need for such institutions to improve the quality of education they provide and for their students to have access to loans to pay for quality education.

The Speaker said he had sponsored a Bill for interest-free loans to be introduced to students to enable them pursue their education without worries.

“Presently before the National Assembly is a Bill, the Students Loan (Access to Higher Education) Bill, which I sponsored and which sets out to provide interest-free loans to students. The repayment of these loans shall commence two years after completion of the National Youth Service,” he said.

Gbajabiamila also said higher institutions of learning should have zero tolerance for individuals, students and workers who are credibly accused of harassment, intimidation, and any form of infringement of individual autonomy.

“Let it be the role of independent panels, made up of persons of integrity and unquestionable authority, to evaluate the credibility of complaints, taking only relevant variables into consideration and, after that, proposing a course of action to which the university must be bound. Our universities must be places of learning and innovation where people feel safe and where injustice in all its forms has no place,” he said.

The Speaker regretted that despite changes around the world, Nigeria has not done enough in government, the academia, and society to adjust its education and skills acquisition system to meet growing realities..

He said: “When we consider the problems of education infrastructure, access to educational opportunities, quality of instruction, the welfare of teachers, lecturers and professors, we will do well to remember that all of these factors matter only to the extent that they are necessary to build institutions that produce citizens who can advance the cause of Nigeria.

“Our world has changed. The old certainties from which we derived assurance and built our expectations no longer exist. The value of the extractive industries that have powered our economy has deteriorated.

“It continues to do so rapidly, as technological advances lead us toward a future where coal, crude and gas are replaced by renewable alternatives of solar, wind and water.

“For Nigerian citizens to thrive in this new world, participate fully and productively in the new global economy and benefit from rather than be consumed by the technological advancements that are changing our world, tertiary education in Nigeria must be prepared to embrace reinvention and adapt to disruption.”