‘Anyone can appeal for admission’ — NUC defends senator’s letter to UniAbuja VC

Tony Nwoye, senator representing Anambra north senatorial district, has appealed to the University of Abuja to grant admission to five students.

The senator made the request in a letter titled “Passionate Appeal for Admission” addressed to the vice-chancellor.

“I humbly request for your kind consideration for admission placement of the underlisted applicants who are my constituents and citizens of Federal Republic of Nigeria for admission in your institution to further their academic career,” the letter reads.

“Kindly find attached their university of Abuja undergracluate 2024/2025 registration form. With humility I am a member of senate committee on tertiary education and Tetfund.
Please accept the assurances of my esteemed regards.”

The students are Ikwegbue Ogechukwu Esther (civil law); Cynthia Chioma Anyacho (civil law); Uchenna Emmanuel Augustine (computer science); Aginwa Sixtus Tochukwu (public administration); and Princess Destiny Agogo (medicine and surgery).

The letter has elicited mixed reactions from Nigerians on social media.

‘WHY I WROTE TO UNIABUJA VC’

Nwoye told TheCable that he does not personally know the students, as they were referred to him by his constituents.

The lawmaker  emphasised that writing to the university is not a criminal act, clarifying that he made a “passionate appeal” rather than a demand.

He also said that while he has made the appeal, the final decision rests with the university.

“Is it a crime that my constituent reached to me to appeal for the students to be put on the for vice-chancellor’s discretional list? University does admission based on merit and my letter was a passionate appeal, not a demand. It is left to the university to decide,” Nwoye said.

“There is no regret that I made that appeal. None of them (students) is from my town. It is my constituents that brought them.

“Every university has a discretional list. Did I collect money from them? I don’t even know them?

“If they don’t reach the pass mark, they cannot even get on the discretional list. They have reached the pass mark and it is now left for the vice-chancellor to decide.”

‘THERE IS NOTHING WRONG WITH IT’

When contacted, Haruna Ajo, spokesperson of the National Universities Commission (NUC), told TheCable that anyone is free to make an appeal for a student to be considered for admission to the university.

He explained that if the student meets the admission requirements, the university will then decide whether or not to act on the appeal.

“He is a senator, but any one can do that. If the student merits the admission and meets the requirements, the university can then consider. A candidate cannot be admitted if they do not meet the requirement,” Ajo said.

“Because he is a senator, some people will reach out to him to help them send a request. There is nothing wrong with him reaching out to the university; but the students have to merit the admission.”