Founder of Afe Babalola University Ado-Ekiti (ABUAD), Afe Babalola, has cautioned the Federal Government against pegging admission into tertiary institutions to 18 years, saying that doing so could hamper the development of gifted children.

The legal icon, who spoke, yesterday, at ABUAD campus in Ado-Ekiti, while reacting to a statement credited to the Education Minister, Prof. Tahir Mamman, on 18 years minimum age for writing WAEC and NECO examinations, and university admission, said that such policy is against the autonomy of the universities on the discretion to grant exception in cases of gifted children.

Mamman had during a television programme said that the minimum age of admission into higher institutions would 18 years. He said: “The meeting that we had with JAMB was to allow underage candidates this year and for it to serve as a kind of notice for parents.

“JAMB will admit students that are below that age, but from next year, the board is going to insist that anybody applying to go to university in Nigeria should meet the required age, which is 18.

“In any case, NECO and WAEC, henceforth, will not be allowing under-age children to write their examinations.” Babalola, who disagreed with the minister that students below 18 years are not mature for university education, said that age is not maturity.

He added: “Children are now demonstrating exceptional academic intelligence which is not common in their ages. I strongly believe that no child deserves to have his or her dreams impugned upon by reason of age alone.

“Maturity is not a function of age. Rather, it is a function of the mindset, emotional intelligence and the ability to understand oneself and the world. Maturity is earned from training the mind, not from aging. Consequently, we have many adults who are all but not matured in the way they think, act, or relate with others and the world they live in.

“University autonomy includes, among other things, the discretion to waive the minimum age requirement for students who pass the minimum admission requirements and possess exceptional academic potentials.

“This is also obtainable in the United Kingdom (UK), Australia, Norway and South Korea. It should not be within the competence of the Federal Government to direct that students of certain ages are disqualified from entering into tertiary institutions after they had met all other admission requirements.”

The Founder and Chancellor of ABUAD insisted that the decision lies between the students and the university, saying that there have been instances that students admitted at the age of 16 graduated with First Class. He said that it is the duty of the university to exercise that discretion and it would continue at ABUAD for gifted children.