BY GBENGA ARIYIBI
ADO-EKITI— The Chairman, Academic Staff Union of Universities, ASUU, University of Ado Ekiti, UNAD, Dr Ayan Adeleke, has castigated the National Universities Commission, NUC, for the issuance of operating license for private universities in Nigeria, saying this has negatively affected the fortune of the much expected  standard of education in the country.

The ASUU boss noted that the quality of graduates being turned out by these new private universities have created more problems for the standard  of education in the country.

The university don who was particularly piqued with the indiscriminate issuance of first class grades to their graduates, saying it was unprecedented in the history of university education in Nigeria.

Ayan, however, lauded the state government move to merge the State-owned University of Education, Ikere Ekiti and the University of Science and Technology, Ifaki Ekiti withUNAD, saying “Ekiti State should not have more than a university for better funding”.

Speaking in an interview with some selected journalists in Ado Ekiti weekend, the ASUU  boss said the trend is affecting the qualities of graduates being produced by Nigerian Universities  in the global and continental markets .

He called on the NUC , as a regulatory body to all Nigeria ’s Universities to begin to beam its searchlight on the compliance to academic ethos in all the ivory Towers across  the nation to preserve the sector.

Adding that   the commission should refrain from giving licenses to individuals solely on the premise of having the  financial muscle to set up the university, but based on other factors, including ability to maintain the standard set by the Commission.

Ayan, who did not absolve the public universities of circumventing some of the academic rules as laid by the government, however, posited that the private universities remains the greatest culprits of the crime.

“Look at what we had been  witnessing in the recent time in some of the private universities, you will see that the NUC must surely be vigilant and step up its monitoring activities on some of these so called  private universities.

“We have seen a university that offered  first class grade to  over fifty of  its graduates in one academic year. This has never happened in the history of public universities in Nigeria an it is capable of ridiculing the standard of education in that sector if the NUC fails to act promptly”, Ayan said.

On the proposed   merger of TUNEDIK, USTI with UNAD, Ayan commended the state government for the bold step , saying  no state of the federation, no matter how resourceful should have more than a university.