The Minister of State for Education, Dr Yusuf Sununu, has clarified that the ministry has not stopped students who are not up to 18 years old from writing the West Africa Senior School Certificate Examination (WAEC) and the National Examinations Council (NECO) exams.
Sununu made this clarification in Abuja today while fielding questions from journalists at an event to mark the 2024 International Literacy Day.
Sununu said that the public misconception and misinterpretation of what was said by the Minister of Education, Prof. Tahir Mamman, was highly disappointing.
He said that the minister was speaking on the 18 years of entry age into the tertiary institutions as was practised in the 6:3:3:4 system of education.
According to him, “We have agreed that we are going to consider it as a work-in-progress. The National Assembly is working and we are also working. It was shocking to say that a university in this country gave admission to children at ages 10, 11 and 12 years. This is totally wrong. We are not saying that there are no exceptions, we know we can have talented students that have the IQ of an adult even at ages six and seven, but these are very few.”
