NGO to ASUU: Test score for UTAS should be near 100%… don’t jettison due process

The Transparency Advocacy for Development Initiative (TADI), a non-governmental organisation (NGO), has urged the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) to address the issues surrounding the University Transparency Accountability Solution (UTAS).

In March, Kashifu Inuwa, director-general of the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), had said UTAS — the union’s proposed payment solution — failed three integrity tests.

But ASUU had insisted that UTAS scored 85 and 77 percent, which it said are “high-class grades in any known evaluation”.

Also, the Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University (ATBU) chapter of ASUU had criticised the NITDA DG over his comments on UTAS and threatened to withdraw his degree certificate.

Reacting to the development in a statement signed by Yomi David and Adeniran Taiwo, TADI executive director and director of public relations, respectively, the group urged ASUU to review the proposed software and make the necessary adjustments for excellent performance.

“It should be noted that NITDA has a constitutional right as the only agency with the mandate to create a framework for the planning, research, development, standardisation, application, coordination, monitoring, evaluation and regulation of information technology practices, activities and systems in Nigeria,” the statement reads.

“In 2016, the agency issued Software Testing and Quality Assurance Framework and Guideline and furthermore, Section 10 of the Guidelines for Nigerian Content Development in ICT, 2019 provides detailed guidelines and expectations for Indigenous Software Development and Software Enabled Products and Services.

“Therefore, the rule of law and due process should not be jettisoned in the bid to get better service solutions for our university system. The testimonial of competence of NITDA in discharging her vital constitutional role over the years speaks for itself with the level of NITDA’s commitment and professionalism exhibited in carrying out its responsibilities.

“Several other indigenous software solution patents have enjoyed the verification and certification process through these quality assurance guidelines as stipulated by NITDA.

“It should be noted that quality assurance testing of any product is done to ensure the delivery of a high-quality end product and assures that the product is glitch-free before it is released. In view of this, we found out that the agency had to carry out 3 out of the 8 tests specified in the Software Testing and Quality Assurance Framework and Guideline.

“These tests are User Acceptance Test (UAT), Stress Test, and Vulnerability Assessment and Penetration Test (VAPT) in which a total of 687 test cases were generated with which 529 passed, 156 failed and 2 cautionary warnings were the outcome. However, this alone reveals that, for a payment solution platform which should be near 100% in default, has several loopholes of high risk vulnerabilities and informational risks that were identified.”

The group added that ASUU as an organisation is known to comprise personalities of high academic excellence and standards, and as such, the union should seek to embrace diligence in all its actions.