The Federal Government announced on Wednesday, September 9, 2026, that it has uncovered the illegal admission of over 58,000 students into various Colleges of Education across the country.
​The Minister of Education, Dr. Tunji Alausa, disclosed this in Abuja during the official inauguration of the Ministerial Committee on Strengthening the Accreditation and Quality Assurance System for Tertiary Institutions.
The panel is chaired by the immediate past Registrar of the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB), Prof. Ishaq Oloyede.
​According to the Minister, the figure far exceeded the initial 5,600 cases identified when the ministry began its investigation into illegal admissions.
Highlighting the severity of the issue, Dr. Alausa cited a specific institution where 9,872 students were admitted illegally, surpassing the 8,593 candidates admitted through approved regulatory channels.
​Dr. Alausa warned that similar illicit admission practices are occurring in universities and polytechnics nationwide, estimating that undetected illegal university admissions could exceed 200,000.
He noted that the ongoing intervention would be treated as a strict “one-time amnesty,” emphasizing that the government will no longer continuously condone or regularize illegal admissions.
​”The practice of institutions admitting students beyond their approved capacities and programmes distorts regulatory tracking and directly compromises the quality of graduates entering the labor market,” the Minister stated.
​He directed the newly inaugurated committee to eliminate systemic loopholes, shift accreditation from periodic inspections to a continuous digital quality assurance framework, and ensure institutions are evaluated on sustainable, existing resources rather than temporary arrangements assembled for regulatory visits.
​Dr. Alausa concluded with a stark warning, stating that under the current administration, officials who fail to enforce regulatory standards risk losing their jobs, while private tertiary institutions found culpable face the revocation of their operating licenses.
