Faculty of Law: 5,000 NOUN graduates ask representatives to intervene on non-mobilization

About 5,000 law graduates of the National Open University of Nigeria (NOUN) have appealed to the House of Representatives to intervene in their inability to proceed to the Nigerian Law School despite completing their programme.

The graduates appealed before the House Committee on Public Petitions, expressing concern over the rejection of their names for mobilization at the Nigerian Law School.

A representative of the affected graduates, Dr Adeniyi Oladele, said they approached the university after graduation to submit their names for the mobilization but were informed that their list had been rejected.

“After graduating from the National Open University as a backlog of law graduates from the same school, we approached the university for mobilization, to be admitted into the Nigerian Law School. We were informed that the list containing our names had been rejected,” he said.

The petitioners further told the commission that NOUN graduates had previously been mobilized to the Nigerian Law School, completed their professional training, passed the required examinations and were subsequently called to the Nigerian Bar Association.

“We spent many years in pain and confusion, but we were given no answer as to why we refused,” he said.

Responding on behalf of NOUN, Professor Shio Usman Ademo confirmed that the university has received the petition and has submitted its response to the issues raised. “Yes, we received the petition and filed our response,” he said.

The committee requested the list of affected students as it anticipates further review of the petition and the number of graduates potentially affected by the mobilization impasse.