Reps move to ban public servants, children from foreign studies

A bill for a law that will bar public and civil servants, their wards and children from studying overseas is in the offing in the House of Representatives.

The bill, sponsored by Hon. Francis Charles Uduyok (PDP, Akwa Ibom), when passed into law, will prohibit public/ civil servants from studying abroad at the undergraduate level.

Titled: “A bill for an Act to prohibit public/civil servants, their children and wards from studying abroad other than for postgraduate studies and for related matters”, has already been read for the first time.

The bill, whose intendment is to compel public officials and their children to patronize Nigeria’s educational institutions as a way of improving the quality of education provides in section 1(i) that “From the commencement of this act, a Nigerian public/civil servant or his/her child or ward shall not apply to a foreign primary, secondary or tertiary institution for studies.”

 The exception to the bill, however, is that unless the public servant or his children had obtained a first degree in Nigeria and the course they are applying for has not been offered by any institution in the country.

 Section 2 of the bill therefore provides that: “Notwithstanding the provisions of section (i) above, anyone exempting applying to a university abroad must have undergone the compulsory 1 year NYSC except (a) at the time of graduation, the applicant had passed the required age for NYSC.”

The bill proposes a three to five year imprisonment or an option of fine of the sum of N5 million or both in case of breach. The House is expected to continue work on the bill when it reconvenes from the Christmas and New Year break in January 2022. (Courtesy New Telegraph)