Ambassador Abayomi Nurain Mumuni, a chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC), has urged President Bola Tinubu to halt the proposed policy by the Minister of Education, Tahir Mamman, which would ban students under 18 from taking the West African Examinations Council (WAEC) and National Examinations Council (NECO) exams.

Mumuni expressed concerns that such a policy would have detrimental effects on students and society, including reduced access to educational opportunities, increased school dropout rates, and delayed career aspirations. He argued that these restrictions could lead to the falsification of documents and encourage students to declare false ages to meet the requirements, ultimately creating more social problems.

Mumuni emphasized that the policy, if implemented, would unfairly limit young students’ ability to pursue their academic and professional goals, potentially causing psychological and social harm. He warned that students may feel isolated from their peers and experience increased stress and anxiety due to the inability to sit for these critical exams. Additionally, the policy could stifle the development of a skilled workforce in Nigeria, further impacting the nation’s economy in the long term.