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Governor Mutfwang orders closure of Jos collapsed school

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Plateau State Governor, Caleb Mutfwang has visited the collapsed structure at the Saint Academy, Busa Buji, Jos North local government area of the State on an on-the-spot assessment as he ordered the immediate closure of the school.

The school has 284 Secondary students and 145 Primary pupils. Its structure collapsed on Friday morning killing 22 persons and leaving 154 others injured.

The statistics obtained on Friday evening showed that 154 people have been rescued from the debris, and 22 individuals have been confirmed dead while 132 are hospitalized. Injured students and staff receive medical treatment at various hospitals in Jos, the State capital.

39 of the injured are at the Plateau State Specialist Hospital, 32 are at Our Lady of Apostles (OLA) Hospital, 55 are at the Bingham University Teaching Hospital and six are at the Jos University Teaching Hospital.

The State government directed all major hospitals in Jos to prioritize the treatment of the victims, regardless of documentation or payment.

On visiting the site of the incident on Saturday morning, Mutfwang also commiserated with the family of the deceased children and promised that the state government would bear the cost of the treatment of the injured students.

He said, “… Whoever built this school, did not do well. I am not a technical person but all I can see on this debris is sand. It is a two-storey building as a layman, I know there has to be a proper mixture of sand and cement but what I can see here is pure sand.

“You have endangered the lives of innocent children for no reason. We can’t continue like this, it is no longer time to spend time praying against demons and Satan, this is human negligence.

“We cannot allow this school to function for the parents, it is unfortunate what has happened but what it means is that this school is closed down immediately.

“We can’t take any further chances and we need to send this message particularly the owners of private schools the drive for profit must not overshadow the safety of lives so we taking steps immediately to do a technical audit of all the schools. We will test their structural integrity to ensure human beings can habit such buildings.”

He added, “Some buildings were not built in the right places, some built without approvals, without the right materials so we will correct these things. I won’t just blame the school but also our public officials who were supposed to supervise but didn’t do their jobs.

“We are setting up a committee to investigate this incident and bring in building professionals to investigate this and anyone found culpable will face the wrath of the law. This is why we signed Executive Order 003 to bring sanity into the environment.

“When we insist that some building be demolished, we are not wicked, we are concerned about the safety of lives. When we see buildings on waterways, in marshy places, we will bring them down. We can’t afford to have this kind of mishap again. May God grant the parents of the deceased the fortitude to bear the loss and grant the injured a quick recovery.”

He commended the efforts of all stakeholders in the rescue mission and asked that citizens do the right things and obey rules and regulations put in place to save lives.

The Governor is also going on hospital visits to the injured.

Education

FG imposes 1-year moratorium on registration of new polytechnics, monotechnics

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Minister of Education, Dr Tunji Alausa, has approved a one-year moratorium on new applications for polytechnics and monotechnics.

He however exempted health institutions due to low enrollment challenges.

This is contained in a statement by the Executive Secretary of the National Board for Technical Education (NBTE), Prof. Idris Bugaje on Thursday in Kaduna.

Bugaje said the moratorium which takes immediate effect means that all new applications for polytechnics and monotechnics are put on hold for 12 months.

He, however, said institutions currently being assessed will be required to pay specific fees to continue the registration process.

“Polytechnics awaiting ministerial approval will be required to pay an application fee of N4 million and a processing fee of N2 million per programme of study.

“Monotechnics, on the other hand, will pay an application fee of N2 million and a processing fee of N1 million per programme of study.

“Applicants have 30 days to pay these fees, failure to which will result in the termination of the registration process.

“New health institutions, which are exempted from the moratorium, will pay the same fees as Monotechnics for registration,” he said.

According to the NBTE executive secretary, the objective of the move is to ensure that tertiary Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) institutions are properly populated within their approved carrying capacities.

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Education

NECO blacklists 14 centres for exam malpractice

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The National Examinations Council has blacklisted 14 examination centres for their involvement in examination malpractice across nine subjects.

The 14 centres were identified in two South-West states, Ogun and Oyo. Ten centres were blacklisted in Ogun State, while four were blacklisted in Oyo State.

NECO Registrar, Prof. Dantani Wushishi, disclosed this on Friday at the Council’s headquarters in Minna, Niger State, during a media briefing where he announced the release of the 2024 Senior School Certificate Examination (External) results, held on Friday February 14, 2025.

The registrar stated that the names of the blacklisted centres and supervisors would be forwarded to other examination bodies for further sanctions.

“The number of candidates booked for various forms of malpractice is 6,169, compared to 8,518 in 2023, representing a 27.7 per cent decrease.

“Seven supervisors—two each from Oyo and Ogun, and one each from Lagos, Cross River, and Ebonyi—were recommended for blacklisting due to poor supervision, lateness, and aiding and abetting malpractice during the examination.

“Fourteen centres — 10 in Ogun and four in Oyo — were blacklisted for whole-centre malpractice across nine subjects.

“The Federal Ministry of Education has mandated that the names of these centres and supervisors involved in malpractice be sent to sister examination bodies, including JAMB and WAEC,” Wushishi said.

The registrar further announced that a total of 86,067 candidates, comprising 44,988 males and 41,079 females, registered for the examination.

Of this number, 84,799 candidates sat for the exam, including 44,277 males and 40,522 females.

“62,929 candidates, representing 75.62 per cent, sat for English Language and scored credit and above, while 77,988 candidates, representing 93.94 per cent, obtained five credits and above in Mathematics.

“The number of candidates who secured five credits and above, including English Language and Mathematics, is 57,114, representing 63.35 per cent.

“Meanwhile, 70,711 candidates, representing 83.39 per cent, obtained five credits and above, irrespective of English Language and Mathematics,” Wushishi added.

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Education

Tinubu approves conversion of YABATECH to university

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The Minister of Education, Dr Tunji Alausa, on Friday, said President Bola Tinubu has approved the conversion of the Yaba College of Technology, YABATECH, to a university.

He disclosed the news to the management, staff, and students of the college during a working visit to the institution.

“The rector said some minutes ago that the staff, students, and management of the college have been praying and fasting that it be converted to a university. Somehow, you have kind of ambushed me, but I must let you know that when I discussed the issue with President Bola Tinubu, he did not waste time in approving. I am just waiting for the memo and other necessary protocols from the appropriate quarters.

“This school is a legacy, and with over 200 staff members holding doctorate degrees in various fields, it is more than ready and fit to become a university. All the credit about this should go to the president, who loves education and is concerned about giving the best to the youths who are our future leaders,” he stated.

Alausa, who went around the college to inaugurate and inspect some projects, expressed satisfaction with the maintenance culture of the management that has kept most of the facilities in good shape despite their age.

“I commend you for pursuing excellence, and we need innovation and investments in technology for development, and I can assure you that the federal government would back you up,” he added.

He stressed further that one of the reasons the Tinubu administration is focusing on technical and vocational education and adding entrepreneurship to it is to stem the Japa Syndrome.

“We are not taking the issue of artificial intelligence, robotics, coding, and others with levity. We know that if our youths are good at those things, they can be in Nigeria and be working for firms in many parts of the world, and they will be earning foreign exchange. That will help stem this Japa of a thing, where people would travel abroad to do menial jobs,” he stated.

“In Europe and other places, the focus has been on incorporating TVET to become a core aspect of their education system, and that is what we are doing now. We need education that would aid manufacturing and technological innovations and that would also lead to a robust private sector, which will drive societal growth and development,” he opined.

Earlier, the rector, Dr Ibrahim Abdul, said with over 200 PhD holders in its services, YABATECH was more than qualified to become a university.

“While we are praying that we become a university, we don’t want to become just one of those universities. We want to be a university of technical and vocational education that would bring innovation and also solve societal problems and challenges and contribute greatly to the advancement of our dear country. We have the manpower, and we just need the support of the government in this regard,” he stated.

Abdul reeled out the various achievements of his administration and said the management would not relent in raising the stakes higher.

The Chairman of the Governing Council, Prof. Funso Afolabi, thanked the minister for the visit and solicited his support in getting their demands met.

The bill that would state the change in status of the college and the new name it would bear is expected to the sent to the National Assembly for passage and presidential assent.

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Bodex F. Hungbo, SPMIIM is a multiple award-winning Nigerian Digital Media Practitioner, Digital Strategist, PR consultant, Brand and Event Expert, Tv Presenter, Tier-A Blogger/Influencer, and a top cobbler in Nigeria.

She has widespread experiences across different professions and skills, which includes experiences in; Marketing, Media, Broadcasting, Brand and Event Management, Administration and Management with prior stints at MTN, NAPIMS-NNPC, GLOBAL FLEET OIL AND GAS, LTV, Silverbird and a host of others

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