The Joint Committee of the House of Representatives investigating the alleged certificate racketeering in higher institutions has called for stiffer penalties for certificate forgery offenders.
In a statement issued on Wednesday by the Chairman. Abubakar Fulata (APC-Jigawa), after a tour of some Lagos-based higher institutions, the committee called for equal punishment for accomplices of the crime.
The universities visited include the University of Lagos, Yaba College of Technology, Lagos, Caleb University, Lagos and Lagos State University.
Fulata recalled that in the past, students studied very well and passed the required examinations before they were awarded degree certificates.
According to him, it is unfortunate that these days people are not ready to study but are only willing to get certificates through illegal means.
The lawmaker said that the investigation was a sequel to the resolution of the House of Representatives on alleged certificate racketeering as revealed by an investigative journalist.
“Some of us studied very well and passed the required examinations before we were given degree certificates from Nigerian universities.
We cannot fold our hands and watch lazy and fraudulent people destroy the name of Nigerian tertiary institutions of learning.
“It is unfortunate to see somebody with a degree certificate and having been mobilised for NYSC service but cannot properly write his name, let alone defending what he/she claims to have studied,” he said.
Fulata said that while certificate forgeries are carried out by fraudulent individuals, the matter becomes worse when management and staff aid the crime.
He advised the management of universities and other higher institutions of learning to improve security features on the certificates for easy verification.
The committee’s call follows the recent resignation of former Minister of Innovation, Science and Technology, Geoffrey Nnaji, amid controversies surrounding academic records and allegations of certificate forgery.
Nnaji said his resignation was not an admission of guilt but rather to protect his integrity and prevent distractions to the Federal Government’s Renewed Hope Agenda.
