Polytechnic Professors Urge Buhari To Sign The BSC/HND Dichotomy Bill Before Leaving Office
The measure intended to remove the imbalance between the holders of first degrees (BSc) and higher national diplomas (HND) in the country have been reminded to President Buhari by polytechnic teachers throughout the nation before he leaves office on May 29.
The admission and termination levels for those with first-degree certificates from universities differ from those of those with HNDs under Nigeria’s employment policy, with the former category having a far superior advantage. This is especially true in the civil service.
President Buhari must not leave office without signing the measure into law, according to Dr. Anderson Ezeibe, National President of the Academic Staff Union of Polytechnics (ASUP), who made the demand in an exclusive interview with the Nigerian Tribune.
The bill, which has been before Buhari for almost two years after it was passed by the National Assembly in June 2021, would not only be a counterproductive exercise but also a significant waste of time and resources for the government, according to him, should Buhari leave office without signing it into law.
He claims that if Buhari does not sign the bill into law, it would invariably be put in the trash and unless the next National Assembly members are interested, it will be taken up again for discussion before being passed on to the next president.
He predicted that Nigeria would continue to play a back-and-forth game with matters of national concern, such as the one under discussion.
He claimed that he did not understand the National Assembly members’ silence over the bill that they had already sent to the president.
The ASUP boss emphasized that closing the gap between the two academic degrees is long overdue and would undoubtedly increase enrollment at polytechnic institutions.
He claimed that because of the difference, many talented technical students who would have naturally registered to gain a high level of technical skills and knowledge are shunning the opportunity to apply for admission to polytechnic institutions.
And if not addressed and reversed, he added, “this development would continue to badly harm Nigeria’s education and economy.”
Thus, Ezeibe asked President Buhari to make history by signing the bill into law and putting an official end to all forms of discrimination in connection with the long-standing contradiction between the holders of both academic certificates, especially at workplaces.
He said that he had run out of time to postpone signing the bill one more time.
