ASUU Threatens To Cancel Post-UME Exams In Universities

Thousands of students who wrote the university-organised matriculation examinations, commonly called Post-UME, during university lecturers strike may have engaged in a futile exercise and may be forced to re-write the examination as lecturers complain they had no input in the exercise.

Speaking at a press conference called by the Ibadan Zone of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) at the Lagos State University, Ojo, the Zonal Coordinator, Adesola Nassir, said the leadership of the universities that have conducted the examination hurriedly did so because of the financial gains accruable from the candidates.

"It is an abnormality," he said. "How can you hold such an important examination without the input of academic staff," he asked.

"Vice-chancellors are employing non-academic staff and consultant to do Post-UME. They are doing it because of money. The exam already constitutes a crisis-point in the universities."

Mr. Nassir said the "results from the examination may be jettisoned."

After writing the government sanctioned Universal Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME), most individual universities in Nigeria require students to pass internally organised matriculation examinations called Post-UME.

In most cases, an average a student's score from both examinations is considered before the student is granted admission. This arrangement started in 2005 over complaints about the falling standard of UTME by universities.

The Ibadan Zone of ASUU comprises University of Lagos (UNILAG), University of Ibadan (UI), Olabisi Onabanjo University (OOU), Lagos State University (LASU), University of Agriculture, Abeokuta (UNAAB), and Tai Solarin University of Education (TASUED).