The Registrar of the Joint Admission and Matriculation Board, Prof. Ishaq Oloyede, has warned parents against falsifying the ages of their children to meet the 18-year minimum age requirement for university admission.
He said this practice is harmful and pushes students toward corruption and crime.
Oloyede spoke at the presentation of the Academic and Research Excellence Award to Professor Yusuf Olaolu Ali (SAN) by Obafemi Awolowo University in Ile-Ife, Osun State.
Oloyede, who is also the former Vice Chancellor of the University of Ilorin, emphasized that universities should encourage and reward excellence.
He praised OAU’s choice of awardee and said it aligns with the goal of promoting scholarship and academic research.
“The Obafemi Awolowo University has identified brilliance,” Oloyede said. “Brilliant students are tagged university scholars and encouraged to aspire to replace current academics. It’s a way of increasing our capacity to develop those who will develop the nation.”
Regarding the issue of age limits for university admissions, Oloyede clarified, “This year, the minimum age is 16, not 18. How many brilliant students do you have at the end of the day? People are cutting corners instead of addressing the root of our problems.”
He added, “Primary school starts at age 6, and a child should undergo 12 years of training before going to university. This is not a new policy. Fortunately, the honourable minister has agreed that this year it’ll be 16. We should get our acts right and recognize that abnormality is becoming normal.”
Oloyede questioned the practice, saying, “How can you say 50% of the class are extra brilliant? What are we seeing at the end of the day? People are cutting corners and acting against the interest of the students. Why do you want to prematurely produce a person who is not ready biologically?”
He concluded, “I think it’s good that for this year it’s 16 years. Anybody who is less than 16 and is going to university will not be admitted, even though some universities like UNILAG don’t give admission to students under age 16.”
