Afe Babalola University Ado-Ekiti (ABUAD) will continue to admit students who are under 18 years, notwithstanding a new policy to the contrary by the Federal Government.
The founder of ABUAD, Aare Afe Babalola, recently stated this while faulting the decision of the Federal Government to bar students not up to 18 from gaining admission and having access to university education in the country.
The elder statesman described the new policy as unacceptable and retrogressive. He stated that brilliant and gifted children would be denied the opportunity to advance their career at the early stage of their lives.
The ABUAD founder said universities enjoy autonomy. He added that they should be allowed to use their discretion in admitting students from different programmes that are obtainable in western countries, rather than government issuing directives in this regard.
Afe Babalola stressed that age has nothing to do with the national growth and development. He warned the government not to use its policies to retard growth and pursuit of young citizens who will provide solutions to a myriad of challenges confronting the country.
The ABUAD founder lamented that the country is missing from a list of countries that have produced young achievers in their pursuit. He attributed the development to inconsistency and retrogressive policies.
“You don’t just go out as a Minister of Education to direct universities against the university’s autonomy as to who to admit or who not to admit. It is the duty of the university to decide to exercise their discretion, and you can’t take that discretion from them.
“To me, the issue of age is a matter of discretion for the university, and let me say that we have been doing it here. We have students who came to ABUAD at 15 and graduated with First Class at the age of 19, and we will continue to do it.
“Having a minimum age of admission into the tertiary institution rule that allows for no exception is a problematic position that will, in the long run, affect the dreams of the younger generations.
“These four qualities are essential to nation-building. Age is not one of them, nor is it a requirement to obtain any of them.
“Maturity is not a function of age. Rather, it is a function of the mindset, emotional intelligence, and the ability to understand oneself and the world. Maturity is earned from training the mind, not from aging.
“Consequently, we have many adults who are all but mature in the way they think, act, or relate with others and the world they live in.
“Conversely, we have children who have defied all odds and achieved even the seemingly impossible.
“I am not shocked that no Nigerian was named among the young achievers in the world. This is because there are strategic policies that suspend the laudable achievements of brilliant young minds till later ages. The proof of this assertion is all around us.
“Age is not maturity. Children are now demonstrating exceptional academic intelligence, which is not common in their ages. I strongly believe that no child deserves to have his or her dreams impugned upon by reason of age alone.
“University autonomy includes, among other things, the discretion to waive the minimum age requirements for students who pass the minimum admission requirements and possess exceptional academic potential. This is as obtainable in the UK, Australia, Norway, and South Korea.
“It should not be within the competence of the Federal Government to direct that students of certain ages are disqualified from entering into tertiary institutions after they have met all other admission requirements.
“We do not forge with our own hands the chain that will hamper the development of our gifted children. The minimum age requirement should also give universities the discretion to admit children below the age of 16 who are endowed with exceptional ability,” the ABUAD founder stated.
Recall that the Minister of Education, Professor Tahir Mamman, had, in a recent television interview, restated the policy of the Federal Government banning students under 18 years from enrolling and sitting for examinations into higher institution.
The minister said students will no longer be allowed to take the examinations of the West African Examinations Council (WAEC), which administers the West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE), and the National Examinations Council (NECO), which organises the Senior School Certificate Examination (SSCE).
He said the Federal Government had directed WAEC and NECO to adhere to the 18-year age limit directive to enable every candidate to be admitted to the two examinations. He insisted that the age limit for admission to a Nigerian university remains 18 years.
