Senate moves to strengthen NUC over academic violations

The Senate on Thursday, moved to strengthen the regulatory powers of the National Universities Commission (NUC) amid rising cases of violations and abuses of the university system.

It passed for Second Reading, ‘A Bill to Repeal & Re-Enact the National Universities Commission Act, 2026′, to give more teeth to the NUC since its establishment in the 1970s.

The Senate also reasoned that significant transformations in higher education, including “the proliferation of private universities, the rise of transactional education”, technical advancement and globalisation of education has made the existing NUC outdated and needed urgent reviews.

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The bill, an executive proposal, was sponsored by the Leader of the Senate, Senator Opeyemi Bamidele.

However, due to his absence on Thursday, the Chief Whip, Senator Mohammed Monguno, led the debate on general principles.

He explained that the proposed law would strengthen the regulatory powers of the NUC to “enforce standards, penalise violations, including criminal sanctions where appropriate, and clearly delineate NUC’s primacy as the apex body for academic programme accreditation.”

Monguno further said it would also promote innovation/research, institutional autonomy by “balancing regulatory oversight with greater university freedom on academic and administrative matters, thereby reducing interferences.”

In addition, the Senate said the new bill sought to modernise governance at the NUC and “address funding and sustainability gaps by introducing provisions that support diversified funding sources and better resource management.”

Meanwhile, the Senate ordered an immediate investigation into the operations and management of Tansian University, Umunya, Anambra State, over allegations of administrative excesses and concerns about the institution’s compliance with the NUC regulatory requirements.

The resolution followed a motion moved by Senator Victor Umeh (NDC, Anambra-Central), who questioned the university’s alleged disregard for established regulatory procedures, particularly in the appointment and dismissal of personnel.

President of the Senate, Senator Godswill Akpabio, asked the relevant committee to investigate the circumstances surrounding the university’s operations and report its findings to the Senate.

Akpabio, who harped on the need to strengthen the regulatory authority of the NUC to ensure that both public and private universities operate within the confines of the law, further noted that the National Assembly had an oversight responsibility to support the Commission in enforcing standards across the university system.

He added that where an institution is found to have violated the law, the National Assembly could recommend appropriate action to the President, including the proscription of such a university.