After 10 years of serving as the Registrar/ Chief Executive Officer of the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board, JAMB, Prof. Ishaq Oloyede is taking his leave. His tenure, after two tenures of five years each, must come to an end. President Bola Tinubu has since announced the appointment of another Professor, Segun Aina, to occupy the position. Nature does not allow for a vacuum.
Oloyede is 71, and Aina is 39, but both have distinguished themselves in academics. They are professors who have proven their mettle. While nobody is indispensable or infallible, some are awed by the transformation Oloyede brought to JAMB and think it would be difficult to match.
Oloyede transformed JAMB from a government-subsidised agency into a high-yielding body that regularly remits financial dividends to the government. Under his leadership, tertiary institutions receive rewards for regulatory compliance, funding special intervention projects. Furthermore, examination malpractice has been minimised, and admission racketeers have been silenced. His extensive innovations have so radically modernised the Board that many can barely recognise the JAMB of the past.
A former Editor of The Punch, Mr Bola Bolawole, in his column wrote:
” That Oloyede would one day quit his job at JAMB was as clear as day follows night. So, why the anguish now that his time to bow out is around the corner? His job is tenure-barred – five years at the first instance, with the opportunity for a second term of another five years, making a total of 10 years, barring any presidential intervention. Oloyede has, thus, used up his constitutionally allotted time.
“I think former President Muhammadu Buhari started the system of elongating the tenure of those who have already served the limit allowed by extant laws. His successor, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, has followed in his footsteps.
“…while searching for a suitable replacement who can step into the extra-large shoes Oloyede is leaving behind. It will be a grievous error of judgment if a suitable replacement is not found for Oloyede. Having tasted the pudding that Oloyede is, I do not think conscious stakeholders will want to settle for anything less.”
Aina, who has been appointed to take over the position, is not a novice. He is a professor of Computer Engineering and became one of the youngest persons to be appointed a professor in his field. He has strong research credentials, academic leadership and commitment to link theory with practice within Nigeria’s education and technology ecosystem.
He also hails from a family of educationists. His father, Prof. Olu Aina, from Otan Ayegbaju in Osun State, is an expert in Vocational and Technical Education, a pathfinder in that field. He lectured at Ahmadu Bello University, Obafemi Awolowo University and also served as the Registrar of the National Business and Technical Examinations Board, NABTEB. The new JAMB boss could find a pot of experience to draw from in his father.
Areas Aina must focus on
Transparency and accountability were the focus of the administration of Oloyede. He may not be a saint, but he is not a devil either. He tried as much as possible to run the Board in an open manner. The agency under him was able to stand on its feet and not rely on the government’s subsidy. JAMB was even making returns to the government. It is doubtful if the government would want that to stop now.
Exam malpractice
Despite the efforts of Oloyede to completely rid the system of exam rogues, there are still pockets of cheats wanting to subvert the system. Occasionally, one hears of rogue sites being operated by criminal elements to deceive unsuspecting members of the public. As a computer engineer, Aina is expected to up the game in that area.
Admission racketeering
Oloyede established the Central Admission Processing System, CAPS, to curb illegal admissions, yet universities still bypass it. JAMB frequently grants waivers to these non-compliant schools and candidates. Moving forward, Aina must wield the big stick, enforce strict compliance, and completely stop these illegal admissions to restore total system integrity.
Media friendliness
Oloyede, as JAMB boss, was a media man. He courted the media and did not hide things from them. He would answer questions and even provide needed information to the media. Aina cannot afford to be in the office and say he is media shy. Doing that would be a great disservice to him and his office.
Credit: VANGUARD
0 Comments