That magical degree from Cotonou

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RECENTLY, following the release of an investigative report by the Daily Nigerian on fake degrees awarded by mushroom universities in Cotonou, Republic of Benin, the Federal Government wielded the big stick on degrees obtained in some neighbouring countries. The report with the title “Undercover: How Daily Nigerian reporter bagged Cotonou varsity degree in six weeks” exposed the intricacies of certificate racketeering. The reporter, Umar Audu, actually ‘completed’ a four-year degree programme in six weeks from the Ecole Superieure de Gestion et de Technologies, ESGT, Cotonou, Benin Republic. He did not go through the normal process of obtaining an application form and sitting an aptitude test or going through an interview, registering for and passing a stipulated number of courses, attending classes and writing a long essay. He obtained the degree magically without even leaving Nigeria’s shores! Indeed, he had his passport stamped by both Nigerian and Beninois immigration agents to enable him participate in the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) programme, which he successfully did despite having previously enrolled on the programme.

Following the report, the Federal Government announced the suspension of evaluation and accreditation of degree certificates from Republic of Benin and Togo. In a statement signed by Augustina Obilor-Duru, on behalf of the Director Press and Public Relations, Federal Ministry of Education, the government indicated that the suspension will subsist pending the outcome of an investigation involving the ministries of Foreign Affairs and Education of Nigeria and the two countries as well the Department of State Security Services (DSS) and the NYSC. The statement added: “The issue of degree mills institutions, i.e institutions that exist on paper or operate in clandestine manner outside the control of regulators, is a global problem that all countries grapple with. The Federal Ministry of Education has been contending with the problem, including illegal institutions located abroad or at home preying on unsuspecting, innocent Nigerians and some desperate Nigerians who deliberately patronise such outlets.

“Periodically, warnings have been issued by the ministry and the National Universities Commission (NUC) against the resort to such institutions and in some instances, reports were made to security agencies to clamp down on the perpetrators. The ministry will continue to review its strategy to plug any loopholes, processes and procedures and deal decisively with any conniving officials.” The government, therefore, called on the general public to support its efforts, show understanding and provide useful information that would assist in finding lasting solutions to the menace. It said that in order to prevent a recurrence, the Federal Ministry of Education had commenced internal administrative processes to determine the culpability or otherwise of its staff for which applicable public service rules would be applied. Reacting to the incident, however, Nigerian academics and students in Benin Republic expressed displeasure over the development. The President of NANS, Benin Republic, Mr Favour Ikenna, said the action had already put genuine students in the two countries in confusion and caused them sleepless nights. Ikenna, a final-year student at the Institut Superieur De Communication Et De Gestion (ISCG University), Abbatoir Carrifour, Cotonou, while totally condemning the fraudulent practices by certain universities in the two countries, appealed to the government to reconsider its action in the interest of thousands of Nigerians legitimately seeking knowledge in the two Francophone countries.

We commend the reporter and his medium on this painstaking exercise. It showcased the value of investigative journalism in addressing the ills that plague society. This report is a serious indictment on institutions and establishments assigned to uphold standards in the education sector. There is no doubting the fact that it exposes the rotten underbelly of government agencies. Although the government promptly reacted to the report, the point really is that something is fundamentally wrong with the processes of degree authentication and validation in Nigeria. That is why the procured fake degree passed through the system undetected and the reporter was listed for participation in the NYSC scheme. Government’s action, then, should be about revamping the processes based on thorough review. It must identify the areas of weakness that have to be plugged.

Evidently, Nigerians would prefer to hear about areas of deficiency that have been unearthed through this exposure and how the government is painstakingly redressing the anomalies within the system rather than merely responding with precipitate actions that do not address the fundamentals. Corruption being at the root of the ineffectiveness of the processes, it is important for the government to come up with overarching steps to stamp out corrupt influences in the entire process. Thanks to the undercover report, Nigerians are able to confirm, with the government unable to issue a denial or play games, the level and depth of insidious acts possible within the processes of government. The government should respond to this exposure by thoroughly revamping its processes and not merely by making ineffectual pronouncements.

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