Abuja: Parents of law students at Atiba University, Oyo, have appealed to the Minister of Education, Dr. Tunji Alausa, the National Universities Commission (NUC), and the Council of Legal Education (CLE) to urgently intervene in their children’s academic predicament. Speaking at a news conference in Abuja, some of the parents said the school admitted their children to study law despite the programme not being accredited by CLE.
According to News Agency of Nigeria, the parents, represented by their lawyer, Mr. Victor Opatola, expressed concern over the psychological trauma their children are experiencing after realizing the university had given them false hope of accrediting the law programme. Opatola highlighted that the students’ academic future, as well as the substantial financial investments made by their families, is now at risk.
Opatola stated that some students had spent up to four years pursuing their law degrees, with their parents investing heavily in tuition, accommodation, and other expenses. The parents only recently became aware of the implications of the university’s inability to secure the required approval for its law programme. The university admitted law students over the past five to six years without CLE accreditation, knowing that without this approval, students cannot advance to law school.
The lawyer emphasized that the CLE’s recent decision to impose a 10-year moratorium on the university’s law programme has further jeopardized the students’ academic and professional futures. This moratorium prevents the university from admitting new students into the programme, and the affected students are unable to validly attend the Nigerian Law School.
Opatola stressed the importance of finding an amicable resolution to ensure that the students’ educational efforts and their parents’ investments do not go to waste. The primary concern is to have the students transferred to accredited law faculties at other universities. The lawyer added that his team had written several letters to the NUC, but bureaucratic delays have hindered progress, prompting the call for swift action from the Minister of Education, the NUC, and the CLE.
Mr. Edim Justus, another lawyer representing the parents, urged the NUC to be more proactive in responding to such issues, noting that the students’ futures are in jeopardy through no fault of their own. Mr. Adetona Tajudeen, a father of a 400-level law student, shared his daughter’s experience of enrolling in the university via a scholarship from the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN). Initially unaware of the distinction between NUC and CLE accreditation, Tajudeen recounted the false assurances they received from the university’s administration.
The parents are appealing to the Minister of Education to convene the relevant regulatory bodies and stakeholders to find a lawful and humane solution to the problem. They have not ruled out taking legal action if necessary. The News Agency of Nigeria reports that Atiba University, established in 2017 and recognized by the NUC, has been temporarily shut down following student protests. The CLE’s 10-year moratorium was imposed due to issues related to the law programme’s facilities and approval, raising concerns for students who have already invested years in their education.