The University of Abuja was founded on the first of January 1988 by a military decree for it to run fulltime and part time programmes for both regular and long distance courses. Unfortunately, UNIABUJA has failed woefully in meeting academic standards expected of a Federal University.

It is on record that the university has one of the lowest number of employed lecturers with some departments having just three lecturers and many of the courses not properly run. Many state universities actually happen to be much better in terms of academic programmes and infrastructure. Till date, the University continues to operate from its temporary site and there is no sign that it will soon move on to its permanent site. The learning environment is not stimulating, management practice is unprofessional, and Lectures are NEPA-like; on and off.

This background informed the reasoning behind the Federal Minister of Education, Professor Ruquayaat Rufai's decision to intervene. This intervention took the shape of an order that certain courses being offered by the University including Medicine and Electrical Engineering be removed from the course list.

Some locals describe the university as a glorified secondary school with corrupt and poorly qualified lecturers acting as the heads of this so called higher learning institution. Admission into the University is controversial and seriously compromised by various corrupt elements. “It is a cash and carry situation, once you have your cash you can buy admission into the school” said one respondent who didn’t want to be named.

Whatever the case, it might be safe to conclude that UNIABUJA just like many of her sister universities is living to her true status as a “glorified secondary school” due to the poor quality of programmes they run. Of all places, a glorified secondary school is not fitting for the nation’s capital and it seems the Minister understands this. The implication is clear due to the cancellation of those particular courses and transfer of affected students to other universities.

It is obvious UNIABUJA is not a fully fledged university yet and the future of Nigerian youths cannot be sacrificed for cheap gain. What is at stake here is not just the reputation of this University, but the standard and integrity of the Nigerian University system as a whole. The sooner something is done about it, the better.

Some students of the university who embarked on a peaceful protest to the Minister’s office lamented that their plight in the university will only worsen if the proposed courses are scrapped although they admitted that the University is a serious write off. One of them openly said her friends laugh at her for attending the university and that she is ashamed to tell people openly about the School she attends. The spotlight is on the Ministry of Education to solve this crisis in Nigerian Education reflected in the University of Abuja. The future of our youth should not be made to suffer due to the failings of our public institutions

http://www.abujafood.com/news-digest/crunch/659-the-university-of-abuja-a-glorified-secondary-school.html