By Meletus EZE
The House of Representatives on Tuesday said it would investigate basis of cut-off mark set by National Common Entrance Examination Board (NCEEB) for admission into Unity Schools.
Consequently, it mandated its Committee on Basic Education and Services to carry out the assignment. This was sequel to a unanimous adoption of a motion by Rep. Randolph Brown (PDP-Rivers) at the plenary.
Moving the motion earlier, Brown recalled that NCEEB recently published the cut-off marks for admission into the schools for the next academic session.
The lawmaker stated that the published cut-off drastically varied from state to state.
He said the quality of education in Nigeria had dropped to an alarming rate and that the new cut-off portended great danger to the future of the country.
According to him, a falling standard in education in any country is like an epidemic and all relevant authorities must consciously work towards redeeming such a situation.
The legislator said that Section 15(1) (2) (a & b) of the Child’s Rights Act, 2003, placed a duty on the government to provide free, compulsory and universal basic education for every Nigerian child.
He said that in addition to the provision of the Act, the importance of education could not be undermined in any society.
“The trend of varied cut-off marks for students who ought to study the same course in the future and practice the same profession is dangerous for our already epileptic educational system.
“It will no doubt affect the development of the country in the long run. Most of the compromised cut-off marks do not make up to 50 per cent of the requisite 100 per cent.
“In some cases, the marks do not make up to even 20 per cent of the requisite percentage. Some students who have to meet a cut-off mark of 65 per cent will be expected to end up in the same university.
“The students are also expected to study the same course as their contemporaries that had to meet up the cut-off mark of 14 per cent for males and 12 per cent for females,” he said.
The lawmaker said that if the situation was not reversed, the educational system would gradually collapse and the country would become largely under-developed.
In his ruling, the Speaker of the house, Mr Yakubu Dogara, mandated the committee to report back within four weeks for further legislative action.
