Kudos to the Daily Nigerian investigative journalist, Umar Shehu, who burst the Cotonou degree racket and beat the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) screening to participate twice in the scheme.

Audu, in an investigative report that has since gone viral, exposed the ease of obtaining questionable degree certificates from some African universities and the rot in Nigeria’s educational system.

Imagine bagging a university degree within six weeks.

And, come to think of it, the fake certificate was delivered to him as though he had ordered a pizza? Not even a genuine certificate could be that packaged.

Anyway, one thing is clear: many Nigerians are parading fake certificates even from universities within Nigeria, and many, too, have ‘served’ or are ‘serving’ in the NYSC scheme more than once, which is against the law.

In its immediate response to the findings of the investigative report, Nigeria’s Ministry of Education suspended accreditation and evaluation of degree certificates from Benin Republic. Uganda, Kenya and Niger have also been added to this list.

But the suspension of accreditation and evaluation of degree certificates from those countries will prove counterproductive if Nigeria fails to address its poor database system.

As my colleague, Chinomso Momoh, put it, it is more like putting a band-aid on a bullet wound as there are thousands of Nigerians attending genuine programmes in those countries just as many others are parading fake certificates even from outside of Africa.

These are criminal actions that are aided by our country’s poor database and verification system, and as such, the government must step up in this area.

Findings also show that these criminal activities are supported by officials within the Ministry of Education, the Ministry of Youth (which supervises the NYSC), and the Ministry of Interior. The concerned ministries must ensure they fish out the enablers of these crimes (who take advantage of loopholes in the system).

The Minister of Education, Tahir Mamman, his colleague in the Ministry of Interior, Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, and the Minister of Youth, Jamila Ibrahim, must collaboratively develop a central identification system for effective tracking of data.

The ministries must also develop modalities for public verification of certificates. This would ensure Nigerians and other concerned individuals or institutions can verify certificate claims.

Meanwhile, as you receive a certificate of whatever, endeavour to look again. E get why.

Photo source: Daily Nigerian