FG FLAGS OVER 258,000 ILLEGAL ADMISSIONS IN UNIVERSITIES, COLLEGES OF EDUCATION

The Federal Government has flagged over 258,000 illegal admissions across Nigerian universities and colleges of education, with the figure potentially higher in universities.Minister of Education, Dr Tunji Alausa, disclosed this on Wednesday, September 9, 2026, in Abuja while inaugurating the Ministerial Committee on Strengthening the Accreditation and Quality Assurance System for Tertiary Institutions.The committee is chaired by former Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) Registrar, Professor Is-haq Oloyede.Alausa said about 58,000 students were found to have been illegally admitted into colleges of education, while universities had not less than 200,000 such admissions, a figure he indicated could be higher.According to the minister, the Federal Government had initially expected to address about 5,600 cases involving illegally admitted students in colleges of education through a one-off amnesty. However, verification uncovered 58,000 affected candidates nationwide.Alausa described the situation as a “shame” and said the government would no longer legitimise illegal admission practices through repeated amnesties or condonement.He cited one institution where 8,593 students were legally admitted, while 9,872 were admitted illegally, meaning the number of illegal admissions exceeded the number of legitimate admissions.The minister linked the problem to institutions exceeding approved admission capacities and admitting students into programmes beyond their approved limits. He also warned that the consequences extend to the labour market, where employers face difficulties finding qualified graduates despite receiving large numbers of applications.As part of the government’s response, Alausa said accreditation would be strengthened through a digital and data-driven system capable of continuously verifying academic and non-academic staff, facilities and equipment.He warned institutions against presenting borrowed staff or equipment during accreditation exercises, saying officials who fail to comply with the new standards could lose their jobs, while private institutions could face withdrawal of their licences.Alausa directed the committee to develop mechanisms for verifying the authenticity and continuous availability of academic and non-academic staff, as well as the ownership and functionality of facilities and equipment.He also advocated the use of geospatial mapping and digital identification of critical equipment, alongside collaboration with national identity systems to prevent individuals from maintaining multiple institutional affiliations.The committee is expected to transform Nigeria’s accreditation system from a largely manual, periodic exercise into a continuous and verifiable process.