The Bishop of the Catholic Diocese of Sokoto, Rev. Fr. Matthew Kukah, has expressed concerns over what he perceives as declining diversity and meritocracy within Nigerian universities, particularly in the North.
Kukah made this observations during a televised program monitored by MUK TV on Thursday, expressing dismay over the reluctance of public universities in the North to allow the construction of churches on their campuses.
He cited examples such as Usmanu Dan Fodio University and Bayero University, emphasizing the need for integration and interrelationships among students, irrespective of religious affiliations.
The cleric said, “There was a time when Ahmadu Bello University had lecturers from different parts of the world. Now, look at what has happened to our universities across Nigeria. Our universities have become just mere incubators of ethnic jingoism.
“So, I do not know which funded federal university that you will name that has a vice chancellor that is not a local boy.
“So the universities themselves have become playgrounds for the ambitions of the local elite. “The question is: Why should a place of worship be a problem for a university, whether it is for the Muslim students in Calabar or the Christian students in Sokoto?
“I approached the Minister of Education about this. I have a letter from the Nigerian Universities Commission. Universities in northern Nigeria have refused to implement this recommendation.”
Similarly, Dr. Abdul Adamu, Chairman of the Academic Staff Union of Universities at the Federal University Gusau in Zamfara State, noted that Christian students at their institution had not requested specific facilities for religious practice.
Efforts to obtain a response from Bayero University, Kano, were unsuccessful, although an unnamed official assured that Christians in the university had been conducting their religious activities without hindrance.
