Gambling With Education Policy Will Land Nigeria In ICU -By Abdulrahman Yusuf Maigida

For as long as education policy is concerned today in Nigeria, our system is at the door step of Intensive Care Unit. Let us not allow it in there – the reason for this piece. So many policy errors have been recently committed in our practice, with the experts watching to allow situation shape itself, as some reversal were witnessed, but it seems that there is no end to these policy inconsiatencies and summersaults. I have a large number of errors so far noted as having been committed by the past and current ministers of education, except the likes of Profs. Fafunwa, Rufa’i, and a few others; but it is not the fault of those Hon. Ministers, but those who are dishing out to them the very misleading advice. Also, not putting seasoned professionals is also largely the reason for some avoidable errors. I remember one of our past Education Ministers was honest enough to say he didn’t know anything about education, even left with endorsement of CCMAS that has removed the autonomy of University Senate on the internal curriculum determination. This is the same way the CCMAS was smuggled into the university education which has not ceased to cause confusion in the system. The passion for history by President Tinubu has been silently murdered as part of the Foundations of Education in the Nigerian universities. Experts are pained on this CCMAS, particularly in the Foundations of Education.

The most recent in the policy ostracization is the cancellation of language (mother tongue) for instruction at the lower and middle basic levels. I wrote an open letter to the current President Tinubu before inauguration in May 2023 about salvaging education in Nigeria with lots of advice given, but unknown if it was not seen. Our education deserves serious attention. If we are to get it right as quickly as possible, education deserves a great deal of attention. This language adoption as a medium of instruction at the formative years was realized to be necessary and in 2022, the policy was approved. This is what our sister country from the same colonial British imperialist, has just realized the value of mother tongue and made it compulsory in all her schools. For Nigeria, what is it between that time in 2022 and now that has gone wrong? I want to plead with the Hon. Minister to see the need to avoid a neo-colonialistic view of our education policy on language. I first heard about this language cancellation at an event organized by the British Council, where Hon. Minister made this declaration.

Let me at this point salute the commitment of President Tinubu for returning history back to the school curriculum. As a visionary leader, I think he shouldn’t allow this one on language to stay in whatever guise. How can the idea of language usage in the classroom at the early stage of schooling, which is formative, be treated with just a waive of hand? I am an education policy specialist, but a call on the language specialists to rise to this occasion and be vehement on this sad development. I know at some point, the ministry will come out to debunk or start modifying and reinterpreting what is already in the public domain. I think it should be made clear here that education should not be a ground for experiments. It is more worrisome that all State Commissioners for Education who are the members of NCE have not been coming out to challenge or advise against some of the not well calculated or examined policy declarations by the Hon.Minister which will have ripple effects on the peculiarity of our diverse environments.

Clearly, the Hon. Minister of Education is empowered by federal education statutes to formulate national education policy. There is no doubt that the Hon. Ministerial has the powers as statutorily provided, authorizing him to formulate, guide, and propose national education policy. It should however be noted that proposing policy to the NCE is the law and to be deliberated, even not at one siting, as the state Comm. for Education are expected to go back for stakeholders consultations, and collate impulses for further deliberation at the NCE, but declaration is what we see and hear these days. National Council on Education should know that there are so many things in operation that are very erroneous.
1. Nigeria operates a federal system in which education is a concurrent legislative responsibility of both the federal and state governments.
2. The National Council on Education (NCE) functions as the highest policy-making body in the Nigerian education sector, comprising the Minister and all State Commissioners for Education and other relevant stakeholder from both the private and public spaces.
3. States implement most aspects of basic and secondary education, meaning effective national policy requires that the states should buy-in and coordinate the approval, to achieve statutory coherence.

If all State Commissioners for Education are also educationists who understand the policy, then, there are implications for unilateral announcement of policy by the Hon. Minister with exhaustive deliberations and stakeholders’ engagements. For instance, the following actions may result:

i. A policy announced without NCE deliberation faces:
ii. Non-implementation by states,
iii. Administrative challenge,
iv. Legitimacy deficits,
v. Potential constitutional objections under the norms of federalism.

Search: opinionnigeria.com for my similar concern as expressed in 2023 before the inauguration of this administration.

What We need and need not to do:

*We need to thread with caution, so that the good intention of this government will materialize and remain sustainable.
*We even need bifurcation of the Federal Ministry of Education, separating higher education from those levels below and different ministers appointed.
*We need no Doctor, Lawyer, Accountant, Engineer, Architect and other non-education specialists; not just as a minister, but Directors and Permanent Secretaries. Anyone who must have anything to do with education should have a PGDE, to function professionally.. To the best of my understanding, this is how we can get it right.

Abdulrahman, Yusuf Maigida
Professor of Educational History & Policy,
International and Comparative Education
University of Port Harcourt..