Headlines

The Federal Government has announced the temporary closure of the Ijora-Marine Bridge in Lagos State for urgent repair works, scheduled to begin on Sunday, May 18.

According to a statement issued on Tuesday by the Federal Controller of Works in Lagos, Mrs Olukorede Kesha, the repairs will last for 21 days, starting from 7:00 a.m. on the commencement day.

Kesha stated that while some sections of the bridge will be fully closed to traffic, others will experience partial closures throughout the repair period.

The scope of work includes lifting the bridge deck to replace worn-out bearings and executing other critical maintenance tasks aimed at improving the safety and comfort of the bridge for motorists and pedestrians.

“We understand the inconvenience this may cause, but this is a necessary step to keep the bridge in good condition and ensure the safety of all road users,” Kesha said.

She added that traffic diversion measures have been put in place, and traffic officials will be deployed to manage the flow of vehicles and provide necessary guidance to motorists.

The House of Representatives on Tuesday rejected a constitutional amendment bill seeking to mandate the rotation of the offices of the President and Vice President among the six geopolitical zones of the country.

The proposed legislation was one of seven constitutional alteration bills listed on the order paper for consideration. All seven were rejected.

However, the House resolved to revisit the bills individually on Wednesday and consider each on its own merit.

At the start of the session, the House had suspended its rules to allow concurrent debate on all seven bills, permitting members to choose any for discussion.

The bill on rotational presidency received the most attention, with a majority of lawmakers speaking against it. Many warned that mandating such rotation in the constitution could set a dangerous precedent.

Deputy Minority Leader Aliyu Madaki led the opposition, arguing that the Federal Character Commission already addresses issues of representation. He said the idea of rotation should not be constitutionalised but left to political parties, which have mechanisms to ensure equitable distribution of offices during elections.

The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) has announced the engagement of leading IT specialists and educational assessment experts to investigate reported technical issues during the 2025 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME).

The decision follows widespread complaints from candidates who attributed the high failure rate in the recently concluded examination to alleged system malfunctions. Out of the 1.9 million candidates who sat for the exam, over 1.5 million reportedly scored below 200 out of a possible 400.

Reacting to the development, education advocate and Chief Executive Officer of Educare, Alex Onyia, revealed that thousands of affected candidates were preparing to initiate legal action against the examination body.

“Currently, we have 8,391 students who have sent in their complaints regarding the glitches in the JAMB 2025 exam,” Onyia stated via his official X (formerly Twitter) handle. “There is ample evidence to prove that JAMB’s system was inefficient, thereby causing serious harm to these students’ mental health.”

He further demanded transparency from the board, calling on JAMB to provide candidates with access to their mark sheets, including their scores, correct answers, and a means to contest discrepancies.

In response, JAMB’s spokesperson, Dr Fabian Benjamin, disclosed in a statement on Monday that the board had commenced a comprehensive post-examination review to assess the integrity of the 2025 UTME.

“As part of our system-wide audit, we have brought in experts from the Computer Professionals Association of Nigeria, Chief External Examiners from tertiary institutions, the Educational Assessment and Research Network in Africa, measurement specialists, and Vice Chancellors from various universities,” Benjamin said.

He explained that the review would cover all phases of the UTME process—from registration to result release—and assured that remedial actions would be taken if any faults were discovered.

“We take these concerns seriously. Should any lapses be confirmed, the board will not hesitate to apply appropriate corrective measures, in line with our established protocols,” he added.

The Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund) has issued a stern warning to beneficiary institutions, cautioning that those who fail to meet set standards or misappropriate allocated funds may be excluded from its intervention programmes.

TETFund Executive Secretary, Arc. Sonny Echono, gave the warning during a one-day strategic meeting with vice-chancellors, bursars, and procurement heads of beneficiary institutions held in Abuja on Monday.

Echono noted that the move is not intended as a punitive measure, but rather as a means of protecting the integrity and effectiveness of the Fund’s initiatives.

“Institutional beneficiaries that repeatedly neglect to access, properly utilise, or account for funds—or those that do not meet minimum enrollment and academic performance criteria—face the risk of being removed from the list of eligible institutions,” Echono stated.

He further emphasized TETFund’s commitment to channeling its resources toward institutions that demonstrate strong governance, transparency, and accountability.

The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has elected Prof. Chris Piwuna, a consultant psychiatrist at the University of Jos Teaching Hospital, as its new national president.

Prof. Piwuna, who also serves as the Dean of Student Affairs at the University of Jos, succeeds Prof. Victor Osodeke, a professor of soil science at the Michael Okpara University of Agriculture, Umudike, Abia State.

The election took place during the union’s 23rd National Delegates Congress held on Sunday in Benin City, Edo State.

Piwuna emerged president after defeating Prof. Adamu Babayo of the Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University, Bauchi.

His election comes amid rising concerns over possible industrial action, following unresolved issues relating to the sharing formula of the recently released earned Academic Allowances by the Federal Government, as well as ongoing challenges such as brain drain within the academic sector.