Governor Bala Mohammed’s led government of Bauchi State has shut down 39 private colleges of education owing to their alleged failure to obtain proper registration.

During a press conference held in Bauchi on Thursday, the state Commissioner for Higher Education, Lydia Tsammani, explained that the institutions in question lacked the necessary approval from the National Commission for Colleges of Education and had not established adequate infrastructure.

She said: “A total of 39 colleges were found to be without anything. They are operating in primary schools and when the school closes, then the NCE programmes start with even primary and secondary school teachers as their teachers.

“They even borrowed teachers because they don’t have anything to make them stand as a college.”

Tsammaani reported that the ministry had communicated a notice to unregistered colleges that possess approved structures, mandating them to finalize their registration within a six-month period or risk facing penalties.

She further stated that 12 colleges currently operating with the approval of the NCCE will be permitted to continue their operations only if they hire qualified personnel and remit their registration fees to the ministry.

“They must ensure that they admit only qualified candidates because it was discovered that some of them are just interested in the school fees.

“They must also ensure continuous upgrade of school facilities and equipment. Some of them are still using analogue typewriters in their offices in this digital era,” she averred.