Parents protest alleged ‘backdoor’ admission of unknown students at Federal Technical College, Awka

By Our Correspondent

Parents of some students of the Federal Technical College, Awka, Anambra State, have protested the alleged exclusion of their children, who recently completed Junior Secondary School 3 (JS3) in the institution, from admission into the next class.

The parents alleged that while their children, who are immediate past students of the school, were being denied admission on the grounds of lack of space, students from outside the institution were allegedly being admitted through what they described as “backdoor” arrangements.

The aggrieved parents, who spoke with our correspondent on Monday, expressed concern that the admission exercise, reportedly scheduled to run from August 12 to 22, was fast approaching its deadline.

One of the parents, who pleaded anonymity, said, “Those they are giving admission are people unknown to us. We are particularly concerned because the period slated for the admission, August 12 to 22, is fast elapsing.

“They hurriedly opened the admission for only two days. Some of us sent our children to the school to collect their admission letters, but they were not issued any.”

The parents alleged that the manner in which the admission exercise was being handled could result in the admission window elapsing before their children were given any opportunity to secure places.

They further claimed that the Principal of the institution, Mr Kelvin Udeh, had travelled to Abuja and would not return until later in the week.

According to the parents, the school ought to give priority to students who had successfully completed JS3 in the institution before admitting external candidates.

They questioned why students who had been admitted through the Federal Government process would subsequently be denied places by the school on the grounds of inadequate space.

The parents appealed to relevant authorities, particularly the Minister of Education, to intervene and ensure that their children were given compassionate consideration in the admission process.

They also called for strict adherence to the admission list published by the school, insisting that no student should be admitted outside the approved process.

The aggrieved parents vowed not to leave the school until their children were issued admission letters, arguing that excluding immediate past students while admitting outsiders would be unfair.

Efforts by our correspondent to contact the principal for his reaction were unsuccessful, as his telephone line repeatedly indicated that it was unavailable as of the time of filing this report.

The allegations could not be independently verified as of press time.
Parents protest alleged ‘backdoor’ admission of unknown students at Federal Technical College, Awka