The result of the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examinations (UTME) conducted by the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) has just been released and Master Ekene Franklin, a 15 year old young man from Imo State, led the pack with a score of 347. The result qualifies him for admission into any university of his choice, in this case, University of Lagos.
Ironically, the same JAMB that is celebrating him and his stellar performance is suggesting that he cannot be admitted into a university on account of under-age. The weird argument is that, at 15, he is too young to withstand the rigours of academic exercise at that level. We consider this position by the Board out rightly preposterous in this day and age where young men in their 30s are elected as Presidents and heads of state to pilot the affairs of countries advanced in technology and complex administrative processes.
Even in Nigeria, with the Not-Too-Young-To-Run law where the age for elective political positions…
