By Caleb Ayansina

National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) has expressed resentment over the manner agencies under the education ministry, particularly the Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC) and the Joint Admission and Matriculation Board Examination (JAMB)  were being run, saying their operations were embedded in secrecy.

The group also revealed that they were compiling some disturbing findings in the agencies, which it would soon forward to the anti-graft agencies for proper investigation. NANS in a statement signed by its Public Relations Officer, Comrade Ezekiel Nwankwo, in Abuja, noted that it had made frantic efforts over time to make inputs in the formulation of policies but was rebuffed.

The statement reads in part, “UBEC has consistently tried to blindfold unsuspecting Nigerians of failure of state governments to pay-up their counterpart fund to access the fund, while its staff remain enmesh with corruption allegations. We hereby demand more openness in the administration of UBEC as it is not a secret cult.

“Also, recently, NANS had cause to call on the management of JAMB to ensure that the E-testing which it brought was seamless to ensure that Nigerian students desiring higher education were not extorted nor made to suffer unduly during the exercise.

“But regrettably, all the advice we offered was ignored and in place JAMB management clearly demonstrated that they were out to extort  money from students and parents with all manner of charges rather than providing a credible platform for admitting students. “It is unacceptable that JAMB sold the examination form for N4,000, and turned around to sell scratch cards for checking the examination results at N1,500.”