86,000 pupils jostle for 26,000 unity schools spaces

The National Common Entrance Examination into the nation's 104 Federal Government Colleges, also known as Unity Schools, took place across the country on Saturday with over 86,000 candidates jostling for 24,000 spaces.

The examination took place in 420 centers across the country but the NECO Registrar, Prof. Monday Joshua, said the results would be released on Wednesday April 29.

The Minister of Education, Mallam Ibrahim Shekarau, represented by the Permanent Secretary in the Federal Ministry of Education, Dr. McJohn Nwabiala, told journalists at Government Secondary School, Zone 3 in Abuja, that a total of 86,365 candidates registered for the examination nationwide with Lagos State having the highest number of candidates put at 25,437. Borno State has only 55 candidates.

While expressing satisfaction with the conduct and organisation of the examination, he however said the 104 Unity Schools had only 24,072 carrying capacity.

Shekarau said, 'The total number from the statistics we have for this year is over 86,000 and when you break it down you will see that Lagos State has the highest number; Lagos presented up to 25,000 candidates and significantly maybe because of the security challenges that we had, Borno state has very low registration but measures are being taken to ensure that even those states that are disadvantaged, something is done to shore them up.'

The Minister added that adequate arrangements were made for candidates in states like Borno, Adamawa and Yobe, where there are insecurity challenges for them to write the examination in safe centers.

He added that candidates in states, where there were supplementary elections and whose centers were used as polling units, were also moved to other centers.

The Minister said, 'Well, we have monitored this particular centre and we are also looking at what is happening across the country; in this centre, I have seen that the sitting arrangement is very well organized.

'I have seen that the candidates are well relaxed, I have interacted with some of them and I have seen that they are familiar with what they are supposed to do in terms of shading and I have also noticed that they have enough invigilators and supervisors from NECO and in terms of spacing the halls are not too congested.' Punch