The Honourable Minister of Education, Foreign Affairs and others have been summoned by the House of Representatives joint Committee over worrisome certificate racketeering by some Nigerians.
Others invited over the alleged certificate racketeering are Ministers of Youth Development, Interior, as well as the Director General of National Youth Service Corps, NYSC, for an investigative public hearing scheduled forMonday, 19th May, 2025.
Chairman of the House joint Committee, Abubakar Hassan Fulata, in a statement made available to DAILY POST in Abuja onSaturday, expressed concerns over the alleged certificate racketeering, saying the parliament will address the matter squarely.
According to the statement, the invitation was also extended tothe Committee of Vice Chancellors, National Universities Commission, (NUC), Penlight Media Ltd, Ministry of Higher and Science Education, Republic of Benin (Ambassade De La Republique Du Benin, Abuja) among others.
Fulata said, though the committee had sent letters to all the relevant public and private organizations in respect of the Investigative hearing, this statement becomes necessary to remind the heads of MDAs and other bodies that whoever fails to show up will be considered as one of those encouraging corruption and certificate racketeering in the education sector.
The lawmaker said the move by the House of Representatives followed revelation by a journalist who disguised and investigated the racketeering which he believed was patriotism on the side of the journalist.
He said lawmakers cannot fold their hands watching the education sector get rotten.
Fulata said: “The journalist went undercover and investigated the booming business, bagged Cotonou varsity degree within few weeks as well as participated in the NYSC scheme within the shortest speed of time.
“This unfortunate development in the education system is indeed alarming. It is even more worrisome that while most Nigerians undergo the process of acquiring educational qualifications following the laid down processes and procedures, others sneak underneath to illicitly acquire their certificates with which they obtain jobs and operate in different fields of human endeavours in this country.
“The act is not only illegal but very dangerous to our collective wellbeing, future and the socio-economic development of the country as whole.”;;
He disclosed that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Joint Admission and Matriculation Board, JAMB, and the Nigerian Immigration Service were yet to make their submission to the Committee despite their request earlier.
Fulata said 52 Federal Universities are yet to make submission, while 61 state universities and 93 private universities are also yet to make their submission.
