NUC Explains Suspension Of Lab Science In JAMB

The National Univer
sities Commission (NUC) on Friday said that it suspended Medical Laboratory Science courses for the 2015/2016 academic session to enable it take stock of the programme.
The NUC Director of Academic Standards, Dr Gidado Kumo, who gave the explanation in an interview in Abuja said that JAMB removed the course from its website for 2015/2016 session in compliance with an NUC directive.
According to him, the NUC has numerous unresolved problems with the Medical Laboratory Science and the Medical Laboratory Council.
“We decided as a commission whose responsibility it is to oversee all the programmes to stop the programmes and take stock of the activities of the programmes and the council across Nigerian university system.
He described as illegal the directive from the council for the establishment of Medical Laboratory Science faculties stating that Medical Laboratory Science should be a Department within the Faculty of Basic Medical Sciences in the Colleges of Health Sciences.
According to him, government may not have the capacity to fund these faculties as proposed because it will amount to duplication and extra cost for government.
“In addition, the council further went ahead to produce a new curriculum and circulated to universities for adoption which was clearly outside the jurisdiction of the council.
“Not forgetting also that in 2008, there were many universities running this programme without the approval of NUC; some of them were run in institutes.
He said that a comprehensive auditing of the programmes were conducted before they were closed down and asked universities to take the students to their main campuses.

Rivers State Commissioner for Information and Communications, Mrs Ibim Semenitari presenting items to a beneficiary of Cradle to Career Scholarship scheme organises by SPDC in Port Harcourt.
Photo: Obinna Prince Dele