A 300-level student in the Nursing department of Harvarde College of Science, Business and Management Studies, Obada in Abeokuta, Ogun State, has died from an alleged suicide
The victim, identified as Ajoke by her colleagues, reportedly took her life on learning that the Ogun State Government had sealed her department for offering a degree programme in Nursing sciences for six years without accreditation.
An enforcement team comprising representatives of the Ogun State Ministry of Health and members of the State Nursing and Midwifery Committee (SNMC), had sealed the institution’s nursing department for offering a degree programme in Nursing Sciences for six years without accreditation from the Nursing and Midwifery Council of Nigeria (NMCN).
Speaking during the enforcement exercise earlier on Tuesday, the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Health, Kayode Oladehinde, stated that such unauthorised programmes contributed to quackery in the profession and posed a threat to the health of the populace.
He said the Nursing Department of the institution would remain closed until it is fully accredited.
Mr Oladehinde, who was represented by the Acting Director of Nursing Services, Serifat Aminu, described a degree in Nursing obtained from Harvarde College and similar institutions without NMCN accreditation as worthless. He explained that graduates from such schools would be denied license to practice in Nigeria and other parts of the world.
“We have discovered that many institutions, including Harvarde College, offer nursing degrees to unsuspecting students. Our mission is to clamp down on such institutions because they end up producing quacks in the Nursing profession. This is dangerous for society. Unfortunately, most students are unaware that their time is being wasted,” he said.
The official warned parents and candidates desiring to pursue nursing or related programmes to be wary of institutions making false claims by checking the NMCN website for an updated list of accredited institutions. He assured that the government would continue to checkmate quackery in the nursing profession.
In a reaction, a 300-level student, who wished to remain anonymous, expressed shock at the institution’s lack of accreditation, lamenting the amount of money her parents had spent on the programme.
READ ALSO: Nigerian university students protest fees hike
However, following Ajoke’s tragic death later in the day, which left the college community in mourning, the state government shut the college.
Newslodgelearnt that Ajoke’s body was discovered in her off-campus hostel room. Her colleagues and other students said they suspect she consumed a poisonous substance.
A colleague of the late student said the deceased had been in a state of despair for some time.
“For more than four months now, she had been depressed because of the fact that the course she was studying was not accredited. She used to think and complain because she claimed her parents used all the money they have to send her to the school.”