A former Executive Secretary of National Universities Commission, Professor Peter Okebukola, has called on President Muhammadu Buhari to consider reappointment of both Professor Abubakar Adamu Rasheed, and Prof Is-haq Oloyede as Executive Secretary of National Universities Commission and Registrar of the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board respectively.
The renowned educationist in a statement on Monday in Abuja, described the duo as two pillars of higher education in Nigeria that should keep leading the Nigerian university system.
The first tenure of both Adamu Rasheed and Is-haq Oloyede, ended on 1st August 2021 alongside other heads of 15 parastatals under the Federal Ministry of Education.
But Okabukola while making case for the renewal of the tenure of the duo, said tenure of Professor Abubakar Adamu Rasheed as Executive Secretary, National Universities Commission (NUC) and that of Professor Is-haq Oloyede as Registrar of the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) have been marked by unprecedented success.
He further noted that while Professor Rasheed was recently ranked by a global assessment agency as the best Executive Secretary in the history of NUC, Professor Is-haq Oloyede is equally globally acclaimed as the most dynamic, innovative and most prudent Registrar JAMB has ever had.
He argued that the activities of the duo- Rasheed and Oloyede have, in the last five years, elevated the quality of university education in Nigeria.
He noted that the President just returned from the Global Education Summit in London with a promise to rejig the education sector under the leadership of Malam Adamu Adamu in terms of funding and efficiency.
According to him, “the Minister of Education needs Rasheed and Oloyede for the promise of the President to hold true for the Nigerian university system.
“While Professor Oloyede ensures improved quality of candidates into the system, Professor Rasheed ensures that when admitted, these candidates benefit from high quality processing leading to much-improved quality of graduates compared with what we used to have before he came into office.
“With about 106 innovations at NUC and 82 innovations in JAMB, Professor Rasheed and Professor Oloyede respectively, are poised to consolidate the gains of the last five years and see to the completion of their ongoing programmes and projects
“For instance, the Rasheed Revolution driven by the Blueprint for the Rapid Revitalisation of University Education in Nigeria (2019 to 2025) is about to take off effectively after its pause by Covid-19”.
Okabukola disclosed that on the strength of Professor Rasheed’s international recognition to lead the implementation of the Blueprint, several donor agencies and development partners have offered support for the implementation of the Blueprint.
He further observed that the massive overhaul of the curriculum of the Nigerian university system, now in its crucial stage, is being led by Professor Rasheed.
According to him, “Other programmes and projects which are dependent on the international clout and expertise of Professor Rasheed to lead, include the Nigerian University System Knowledge Bank, the Virtual Institute for Capacity Building in Higher Education (VICBHE) and the Digest of Statistics (the most current in the history of education in Nigeria)
“Professor Is-haq Oloyede needs to personally move the ongoing innovations in JAMB to higher gear in order not to lose the gains of the past five years.
“Some of these innovations are Central Admissions Processing System (CAPS) for automation of admission process; establishment of Equal Opportunity Group to conduct UTME for blind candidates; expansion of CBT centres capacity for standardization; E-Ticketing (for Complaints support.jamb.gov.ng); Integrated Brochure and Syllabus System (IBASS) for prompt delivery of admissions requirements; use of Biometric
” Authentications to confirm validity of registration, printing of e-slip and candidates identity; introduction of management dashboard to monitor registration and admission exercise real time; use of CCTV cameras in all centres to monitor the examination and registration process real time; and exemplary funds management: prudent and judicious use of financial resources of JAMB”.
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