WAEC Set to Use Electronic Means In Marking Its Theory Questions

The West African Examinations Council, WAEC, has disclosed that it has introduced e-marker in examination process, beginning with the ongoing November/December examination nationwide.

According to the Head of WAEC Nigeria National Office, Mr Olutise Adenipekun, the innovation will help in the assessment of theoretical questions such that marking will no longer be done manually but electronically.

He mentioned that following this development, candidates will no longer be able to take their theory questions home after their examinations, as answer booklets will now be merged with the question papers.

He however, stated that the development does not mean that teachers who were engaged by WAEC in the manual marking will now be disengaged but rather will be used to handle the electronic-marking project.

JAMB Will Not Postpone The 2016 Admission Deadline - JAMB Boss

The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) yesterday stated that the deadline for the conclusion of admissions into higher institutions for 2016 remains effective.

This was disclosed by the Registrar of the board, Prof. Is-haq Oloyede, during his address at the opening of an Extra-Ordinary Technical Committee Meeting on 2016 Admissions to First Choice Institutions which was held at the Baze University, Abuja.

He mentioned that some institutions were not able to submit names of their admitted candidates for approval as internal processes leading to the exercise had not been completed.

It was gathered that such institutions have requested for an earlier special date than the date for the Second Technical Committee Meeting scheduled for Nov. 14 in Owerri, Imo State.

According to him, the affected institutions are expected to make presentations of their recommended candidates to the board at the meeting.                  

University sacks 35 staff over insufficient funds

The Federal University, Lafia, has terminated the appointment of 35 of its non-teaching staff over the inability of the institution to pay their salaries.

Mohammed Sanusi-Liman, Vice Chancellor of the university, told journalists on Sunday, September 18, in Lafia that the council took the decision due to insufficient funds.

Mr. Sanusi-Liman explained that the affected staff, who were employed by the institution earlier in the year, comprised 11 corps members who were retained after their service year and 24 others.

He said the council had directed the management to source for funds and pay off the affected staff since they had worked for over five months without being paid.

“It would be inhuman to keep the staff working when we cannot pay them giving our poor budget and that is why the council decided that we should pay them off,” he said.

According to him, the university has consistently encountered a shortfall of over N38 million in its allocation for several months, which had adversely affected the running of the institution.

He also confirmed that the management had uncovered a job racketeering syndicate in the university, which had offered illegal employment to some persons.

“When we got wind of the matter, the management set up an investigative committee which turned in a report that was submitted to the council.

“The university council referred the matter to its disciplinary committee for investigation and appropriate action,’’ he said.

On the post UTME screening of candidates for admission into the university for the 2016/2017 academic session, the vice chancellor said that over 4,000 applicants had been screened.

He added that the council would meet to determine its carrying capacity before the admission list would be released.

He also announced that the university council had approved the commencement of its post graduate programmes effective from the 2016/2017 academic session.

Exam board warns against unjust admission processes in 2016

The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) has cautioned tertiary institutions in Nigeria against any form of arbitrary and unjust processes during this year’s admission procession.

The registrar of the board, Prof. Is-haq Oloyede said this on Friday, September 16, during his address at the Extra-Ordinary 2016 Technical Committee Meeting on Admissions into First Choice Institutions held at Baze University in Abuja.

He stated that, while institutions reserve the right to admit students, they must justly explain why other candidates were rejected.

“The institutions have the right to select (their students) but they must be able to explain if someone is not taken.”

“Universities have the right to determine the criteria for admission but the criteria must be reasonable, explicit and must have been published prior to application by the candidates.”

During his speech, Oloyede bemoaned the admission criteria of some institutions which is supposed to be universal.

“Even when you are not having candidates from other parts of the country or one reason or another, you should be able to be national no matter your proprietorship,” Oloyede said.

“A situation where you have a federal university with students from only 10 to 15 states of the federation, that shows that the institution is not justifying its existence. We are insisting that every institution must have students from every state of the federation in order to bring national cohesion, unity and students who will be global products.”

He said that, although JAMB will not be entitled to inserting students into any institution, the board would ensure that all candidates are treated fairly which is part of its role as  a referee for justice, equity and standards.

Oloyede assured that the “only difference between this year’s admissions process and what has always been the practice, is the policy that there should be no written post UTME test. All other processes remain.

“A situation where requirements that were not stated in the brochure to guide candidates suddenly become applicable during admissions exercise would be unacceptable. This is because a condition not stated in the rules cannot be effected to the detriment of law abiding applicants who applied in accordance with the institutional provisions in the brochure,” he said.

No plan to strike, ASUU assures Nigerians

The Academic Staff Union of Universities, ASUU, has no plans to commence an interim strike on October 2, an official has said. 

The Chairman of the University of Abuja chapter of ASUU, Ben Ugheoke, on Wednesday said that he was wrongly quoted on a planned strike. The News Agency of Nigeria had quoted Mr. Ugheoke on Tuesday as saying the lecturers’ strike would commence next month. 

In an interview on Wednesday, Mr. Ugheoke told said he never gave such statement to the NAN reporter. “A certain reporter in NAN is responsible for this damage,” he said. “As a result of this falsified report, I am facing a panel later tonight from ASUU National body.” The university don said he had asked for a rebuttal of the story since it was published. “I have reached out to the NAN reporter and he told me it was a mix-up. He also begged me to save his job,” he said. 

In the report widely circulated by Nigerian media, the government news agency quoted the don as saying ASUU was to embark on a one-week warning strike from October 2. The report also said a full blown strike was planned for November if the federal government failed to meet the demands from its negotiations with ASUU in 2009 and 2013. 

The report also highlighted that the federal government was yet to provide funds for the Universities NEEDS Assessment and the facilitation of the registration of the Nigerian Universities Pension Management Company, NUPEMCO. Speaking on ASUU, Mr. Ugheoke said the union had been sensitizing the public on its stance on national issues and university education. “We have had zonal press conferences. Abuja zone had its own on August 31, 2016. Although I was present, the event was anchored by the zonal coordinator, Theophilus Lagi”.  “During the event, we listed all the things we have been trying to get the federal government to look into. “This we did so that the general public can be made aware of what we are doing and the current state of things between ASUU and the federal government. “We have never given a date for any form of strike, whether warning strike or full blown strike. There was nothing like a date fixed for a strike,” he said

PREMIUM TIMES

NECO June/July SSCE Results For 2016 Released

It has been gathered that the National Examination Council, (NECO), has released the 2016 June/July Senior School Certificate Examination (SSCE) results.

According to Prof. Charles Uwakwe, Registrar of the Council, out of the 1,022,474 who sat for the examination, 88.51% of candidates obtained at least five credits including in Mathematics and English Language.

He further revealed that 905,011 (84.54 per cent) of candidates got 5 credits and above in English Language while 812,846 (80.16 percent) got 5 credits and above in Mathematics.

Ekiti State recorded the highest with 96.48 percent and Katsina State recording the least with 72.59 percent.

He however noted that 43,905 cases of malpractice were recorded, with 194 schools implicated in cases of mass cheating; adding that the results of candidates involved have been cancelled.

Candidates are advised to visit the official NECO website http://www.mynecoexams.com/results/ to check their results.                  

JAMB To Stop The Use Of Scratch Cards For Registration And Result Checking

     

Report has it that the Joint Admission and Matriculation Board (JAMB), will soon stop the use of scratch cards for registration and checking of results.

This was disclosed JAMB Registrar Prof. Ishaq Oloyode on Tuesday at the National Executive Council meeting of the Non-Academic Staff Union (NASU) in Abuja.

According to him this will likely become effective from 2017. 

He added that once this becomes effective, students would generate a PIN number for themselves from their phone or computers before registering for examinations.

He frowned at situations whereby banks and vendors hoard the cards, only to sell them at a higher price.

He equally charged NASU members to involve in the ownership of Computer-Based Testing Centres, saying those who own the centres are businessmen merely exploiting students.

ASUU Set To Embark On A Nationwide Warning Strike

Report has it that the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), will on October 2nd begin a warning strike to press home their demands.

According to the ASUU Chairman, University of Abuja, Dr. Ben, since the Federal Government has refused to implement the demands of the union, the union has no option but to embark on a warning strike to let the FG know members of the union are not jokers.

He further stated that if at the end of the warning strike the situation remains the same, then union will commence an indefinite strike.

FG Declares September 12th And 13th As Public Holidays

The Federal Government has declared Monday and Tuesday, Sept. 12 and Sept.13 as public holidays to mark the Eid-el-Kabir. 

This was made known by the Minister of Interior, Retired Lt.-Gen. Abdulrahman Dambazau, in a statement signed by the acting Permanent Secretary in the ministry, Muhammadu Maccido. 

He called on all Muslims and Nigerians in general to support the current administration in its effort to stabilize the economy.

JAMB Will Not Add To Or Remove From Lists Of Candidates Sent By Institutions – JAMB Boss

 The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) on Tuesday has disclosed that it will not remove, add to or alter in any way the list of admitted candidates forwarded to the Board by various institutions.

This was disclosed by the JAMB Registrar Prof. Is-haq Oloyede during the ongoing technical meeting with stake holders at kano.

He further stated that he is committed to ensuring that the admissions for 2016 were concluded before or by the approved deadline of November 30, 2016, since to whom much is given much is expected.

He added that the 2016 admissions, will be as smooth as ever.

NUC's New Boss Resolves To Scrap Diploma Programmes In Universities

 The new Executive Secretary of the National University Commission, Prof. Abubakar Adamu Rasheed, has disclosed that the commission will soon stop Universities from running diploma programmes.

He made this known when he was paid a visit by the the Executive Secretary of the National Board for Technical Education (NBTE), Dr Masaudu Kazaure in his office.

According to Prof. Rasheed, only polytechnics had the statutory right to run diploma programmes.

He equally stated that the federal government had earlier issued a circular as far back as 2000 prohibiting the use of Ordinary Diploma certificates either in the promotion or employment of staff in the civil service, adding that the commission would soon notify universities to stop the programmes.

He gave assurance that the commission will collaborate with NBTE towards developing a value print that will give polytechnics the capacity to run degree programmes.

He further dispelled rumours that the FG has converted Kaduna state Polytechnic and Yaba College of Technology to city universities and commended the recent move by the Council of Civil Service Establishments in making HND holders that have Post-Graduate Diploma (PGD) to be at par with university graduates in the civil service

UNILAG New Sanctions/Penalties For Examination Malpractice

 The Senate of the University of Lagos has released approved penalties and sanctions for various cases of examination misconduct as well as instructions to guide students conduct during examinations.

All Deans and Heads of Departments are requested to kindly bring this information to the attention of their students.

INSTRUCTIONS TO CANDIDATES

1.Candidates must attend a minimum of 65% of the lectures for the course; examiners have the right to prevent defaulters from sitting for the examinations.

2.Candidates must be ready to enter the examination hall ten minutes before the time the examination is due to start. Candidates who arrive more than half an hour after an examination has started shall be admitted only at the discretion of the invigilator(s).

3. Candidates may not leave the hall during the
examination.

4. Candidates must come with their own writing materials to the examination hall.

5. Communication between candidates is strictly forbidden.

6. The only permissible way of attracting the attention of the invigilator is by the raising of hand.

7. All rough work must be done in the answer booklets and crossed neatly throughout.

8. Candidates are to write legibly. Names are not to be written on the answer booklets. The answers to each question must be started on a separate page.

9. Attendance register is to be signed at the
commencement of the examination and as each candidate hands in the script to the invigilator.

10. Candidates must ensure that they have inserted at the appropriate places on the front cover of their booklets, their matriculation numbers and the number of questions answered.

11. Mobile phones must be motivator switched off in examination hall.

Candidates are hereby informed that any student caught or implicated in any act of misconduct would automatically cease to continue with the examination until the case has been declared.

The following prescribed penalties will be imposed on anyone cause committing the under listed acts of misconduct. No plea will be entertained.

PENALTIES/SANCTIONS FOR EXAMINATION MISCONDUCT

1. Impersonation - Expulsion

2. Smuggling and Possession of Answer Script - Expulsion

3. Destruction of unauthorized
Material - Expulsion

4. Attacking or threatening Invigilators - Expulsion

5. Tendering unauthentic document - Expulsion

6. Failure to submit answer script - Rustication (two semesters)

7. Recidivism:- Expulsion. Except cases listed in 15-19 below

8. Copying from Unauthorized
material - Rustication (two semesters)

9. Possession of written materials:- 1st Time; Rustication (two semesters) Recidivist: Expulsion

10. Aiding and Abetting others to copy - Rustication (two semesters)

11. Refusal to submit offending
materials - Rustication (two semesters)

12. Collaborative Copying - Rustication (two semesters)

13. Refusal to complete Malpractice Forms - Rustication (two semesters)

14 Unauthorized communication - 1st Time; Warning 2nd Time; Rustication(1 Semester)

15. Disruptive Behavior - 1st Time; Warning
2nd Time; Rustication (1 Semester).

16. Influencing Examination Official - 1st Time; Warning 2nd Time; Rustication(1 Semester)

17. Unauthorised Changing of Sitting Position - 1st Time; Warning 2nd Time; Rustication(1 Semester)

18. Disobeying Examination Instructions - 1st Time; Warning 2nd Time;Rustication(1 Semester)

19. Other related acts of Examination Misconduct not specifically stated - Penalty shall be determined by the Misconduct Panel.

OAU Appoints Prof. Anthony Adebolu Elujoba As Acting Vice Chancellor

 The Senate of Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife has appointed Prof. Anthony Adebolu Elujoba, a Professor of Pharmacognosy, Faculty of Pharmacy as the Acting Vice Chancellor of the University.

Professor Elujoba has served as the Head of Department of Pharmacognosy, Dean Faculty of Pharmacy, Chairman Committee of Deans, Chairman Faculty Post Graduate Committee/ Board of Studies, Research and Selection Committee, member Faculty Review Panel, Senate Representative on OAU Teaching Hospital Management Board, Member Management Board of Natural History Museum and Post Graduate Board and Dean’s Representative, Faculty of Technology.

He is also the President of the African AIDS Research Network, Nigerian Chapter and a Member, Board of Trustees of the Network of People Living with HIV/AIDS in Nigeria (NEPWHAN).

It was gathered that Prof. Elujoba won the Senate election with 201 votes ahead of Prof. Lamikanra, also from the Faculty of Pharmacy, who had 5 votes.

President Muhammadu Buhari is expected to make the official announcement of Elujoba as the Acting Vice- Chancellor of the institution.

President Buhari Orders Reopening Of OAU

 The president Buhari has directed that all offices and facilities of Obafemi Awolowo University be opened for normal administrative and academic activities to enable a quick resolution of the impasse current crisis in the school.

He equally directed that the Senate of the University should convene a meeting to recommend a qualified member to the Honorable Minister of Education for appointment as Acting Vice-Chancellor.

Consequently, a special meeting of the senate of the institution has been scheduled to hold tomorrow 21st July, 2016.

Depending on the outcome of the meeting, the institution may re-open next week for academic activities.

ASUU Warns Of Imminent Crisis, Kicks Against The Scrapping Of Post-UTME

 The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has disclosed that the nation’s universities may soon experience crisis if the federal government fails to begin the implementation of the 2009 ASUU-FG agreement, especially the NEEDS assessment agreement.

The Union equally demanded that the federal government reverse the ban on post-UTME as well as the exclusive right granted to JAMB to admit students into tertiary institutions.

The ASUU president, Biodun Ogunyemi made this known while addressing new men yesterday in Abuja.

According to him, the scrapping of Post-UTME and the position of the Federal government on the issue portends serious danger for the quality of education in this country.

He emphasized that since the introduction of Post-UTME, there has been improvement in the quality of students admitted into the universities as evident in the declining drop-out rate and urged the federal government to reconsider its decision and convene a stakeholders meeting before making any policy.

JAMB Admission Posting Is Not The Same as Admission List or Admission Letter - Prof. Dibu

 The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board has stated that the recent list of candidates sent to tertiary institutions contains just the names of candidates who met the national cut-off point within the set criteria and hence qualified for screening in their respective institutions based on the institution's capacity and it's not in any way an admission list.

This was disclosed by the JAMB registrar Prof. Dibu Ojerinde, in a statement on Sunday.

According to him, the admission list will only be made available after appropriate screening of candidates by the institutions.

He equally added that all institutions that have need for more candidates can source from their omnibus printout earlier sent to them by the board in order to ensure that available spaces are adequately utilised.

In an earlier statement on Saturday credited to the Deputy Director of Press and Public Relations in the Ministry of Education, Mr. Ben. Bem-Goong, it was stated that the role of JAMB is to conduct the UTME, compile the list of candidates whose scores meet the cut-off marks (180 and above) and send same to the universities.

The institutions, will now short list the candidates, using the agreed guidelines and thereafter return the short listed candidates to JAMB for verification of compliance with the guidelines and issuance of JAMB admission letters.

Only JAMB Has The Right To Admit Candidates - Ministry Of Education

 The Federal Ministry of Education has reiterated that the admission of candidates into tertiary institutions in the country remains the responsibility of the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB).

The Ministry equally disclosed that institutions have power only to screen candidates sent to it by JAMB in order to fish out those with anti-social traits and suspicious credentials and that no university is allowed to have anything to do with any applicant who is not its student.

According to the Ministry's Director, Press and Public Relations, Mr. Ben Bem Goong, the cancellation of post- UTME remains and screening for those admitted by JAMB is limited to only the examination of credentials and physical examination of candidates to ensure they are not cultists and this should be done upon resumption.

JAMB Enables Portal To Check Institution You Have Been Posted For 2016 Admission

As promised by the Joint Admission And Matriculation Board (JAMB), the portal for candidates to determine the institution they have been posted for 2016 admission has been enabled.

Candidates can actually check the institutions they have been posted for 2016 admission.

The portal is yet to be made official on its website, which goes to show that the candidates details are still being uploaded.

So if you check and it does not display your details, you can always check back.

How To Check Institution You Have Been Posted For 2016 Admission

-Visit the portal by clicking here

-On the page that opens, enter your JAMB Registration Number in the space provided.

-Click on "Check where you have been posted for admission" to access the details.

See other students sharing their successful admission consideration using the comments below.

Visit this website daily for another important update coming soon.

ASUU Attacks JAMB Over New Admission Model

 The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), University of Ibadan chapter, has faulted the guidelines released by the Joint Admission and Matriculation Board (JAMB) for admission of candidates into Nigerian tertiary institutions stating that JAMB acted beyond its powers.

According to the union, the Senate of Nigerian Universities has the mandate to regulate admission modalities as each university has standards which are not subjected to the whims and caprices of any government appointee.

Speaking, the Chairman of the union, Dr. Deji Omole, said both the Minister of Education, Mallam Adamu Adamu, and JAMB Registrar, Prof. Dibu Ojerinde, first got it wrong by going against the administrative charges collected by institutions for post-UTME and later reversed their stand in their guidelines which he described as illegal and designed to favour children of the rich against the poor.

He mentioned that the point-based scoring system in the guidelines is not new as it has been used in UI 5 years ago and abandoned.

He equally stated that JAMB is only trying to cover up their inadequacies as its credibility is yearly queried.

He pointed out that last year candidates were pushed to private universities against their will and this year JAMB awarded 40 marks to some candidates without justification.

He further mentioned that with the stipulation on the current guidelines many candidates will be disadvantaged and JAMB would have succeeded in entrenching corruption and further kill tertiary education in the country.

Association Of VCs Denies Report That Screening Fee Is Now N2500

 The Association of Vice Chancellors of Nigerian Universities (AVCNU) through its Secretary-General, Prof. Michael Faborode, has denied reports credited to the association that the Federal Ministry of Education and other stakeholders in the tertiary education sub-sector have agreed on N2,500 as fee for post- Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (post-UTME) screening.

According to him, it is not the duty of the association to make such pronouncement but that of the Ministry of Education.

He further stated that the whole story exhibits poor reportage, contains half-truth and conjectures, and represents very poor translation of the proper content of a written information as there was no way it was stated in the statement released by the association that Post-UTME is now N2,500 or that CBT has been scrapped.