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25.09.2021 Featured FLASHBACK: How NIJ Suspended Student for Exposing Its Exam Manipulation for Korede Bello

Published 25th Sep, 2021

By Daniel Ojukwu

In late 2015, Nigerian Institute of Journalism (NIJ), the country’s foremost monotechnic, was hit with its biggest scandal yet as Korede Bello, one of its students at the time, was permitted to write his final examination in the institution despite failing to meet a 70 percent attendance requirement.

Adeboye Ola, a lecturer at the institution, had famously remarked that any student who failed to meet the attendance quota would not be allowed to partake in the examinations.

This is as Lekan Fakoyejo and Damilare Famuyiwa remember it. Both men had been students of Ola, and classmates of Bello at the time. Famuyiwa would later go on to make a publication on Ola’s statement, earning himself enemies in the management camp of the singer (Bello), as well as NIJ.

Other alumni who spoke with FIJ on condition of anonymity also clearly remember Ola threatening to resign if anyone was allowed to write the exams if they did not meet the quota. Five years after, Ola has bagged a Ph.D, and continues to lecture in the institution.

READ ALSO: For Reminding Lecturers of Exam Rules, Nigerian Institute of Journalism Expels Student

Famuyiwa, author of the publication that exposed the impending scam in the institution, was forced to apologize publicly on Facebook, however, explaining that his apology was forced out of him by the management, earned him a suspension letter from then Registrar, Dotun Adeniji.

Damilare Famuyiwa

FIJ reached out to Adeboye Ola for comments on the incident, but he claimed not to recollect, saying: “He wrote the exam, all those things, between you and I, I can’t remember now. People will always want to make an issue of everything. Even the two people involved, they have moved on.

“Damilare on his own, knows why he was suspended, but you know he came back.”

Ola volunteered information confirming Famuyiwa was accepted back into the institution one year after, moments after claiming not to recollect much of the incident.

READ ALSO: Bandits Bypassing Telecom Shutdown in Zamfara With Hidden Cyber Network

FIJ learnt that a similar incident repeated in 2020 when another student, James Abraham, was suspended for a year after an altercation with security personnel of the institution.

Speaking on condition of anonymity, a student told FIJ: “The security claimed he was physical with pictures to prove, but in the picture, the guy (Abraham) was not there, just the security guy lying down on the floor.”

Another student, Queeneth Damilola (not real name), told FIJ: “Everybody is scared of being picked out. Some students were called and threatened for signing a petition to question Abraham’s punishment.”

READ ALSO: NGO Group Offers Legal Help to Jailed #EndSARS Protesters

FIJ recently reported the institution’s expulsion of another student, Babalola Ayoola, for reminding lecturers of rules guiding examination conduct, terming his actions ‘inciting’ against the management.

Reacting to the publication, a former student, Chidubem Onyejemuo, said: “We were not even regular students, just people who wanted to sharpen writing and communication skills. None of us got the certificate after wasting N80,000 because they expected us to pay extra to resit for the carryover.

“I registered for a certification course. We wrote to the school management that we would take our exams after the Christmas holidays. At first they agreed, then they changed their mind. They gave us all carryovers for a certification course.”

Chidubem Onyejemuo

One student, Kolade Majekodunmi (not real name) said: “Students cannot express themselves; we can’t, it’s not conducive. The centre of this crisis is a man, Omojuyigbe, he is a sadist. He keeps pushing students like it’s a secondary school.”

FIJ reached out to Dele Omojuyigbe, the institution’s Deputy Provost for comments, but he emphasized that “the school has rules” before refusing to comment further.

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Published 25th Sep, 2021

By Daniel Ojukwu

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