There is fire on the mountain, and nobody seems to be on the run. The leaders of tomorrow can no longer pass basic examinations, and therein lies the fate of the “giant of Africa”.

The recently released results of the 2025 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) have once again exposed the deepening crisis in Nigeria’s education sector. Out of nearly 2 million candidates, over 1.5 million scored below 200—a failure rate of more than 78%. This is not just an academic issue; it’s a national emergency.

READ IT HERE: Over 1.5 million candidates score below 200 in 2025 UTME — JAMB

While there are countless individual and systemic factors at play, I’ll focus on three key reasons driving this issue.

1. Collapse of Educational Standards

One of the major factors behind the mass failure is the consistent underinvestment in education. Nigeria’s budgetary allocation to education remains among the lowest in Africa. Many public schools lack basic infrastructure, updated learning materials, or qualified teachers. The curriculum itself has also become outdated, failing to engage young minds in critical thinking and problem-solving.

2. School na “scam”

Our society has shifted toward anti-intellectualism. Today’s Nigerian youth are bombarded by a culture that glorifies shortcuts to wealth and fame. The growing popularity of “school na scam” rhetoric, the idolization of fraudsters and entertainers with questionable values, and politicians who forge certificates have all weakened the collective belief in the power of education.

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When students see more value in social media clout or illegal income than in studying, we lose the battle before it begins. This cultural decay shows up in the way celebrities known for poor educational values are platformed and celebrated. It shows in the normalisation of unseriousness among students who prioritise iPhones, luxury lifestyles, and peer validation over learning.

3. Mediocrity

When the JAMB cut-off point was reduced to 160, it was not just a red flag, it was an institutional failure. It seemed the system was rewarding mediocrity instead of lifting students to meet academic standards. Institutions are now adjusting standards to accommodate declining performance, and this would demoralise hardworking students and send the wrong message that excellence is no longer required.

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What Needs to Change

Fixing this crisis requires action from all stakeholders. Parents must actively participate in their children’s education. They should prioritise values, discipline, and learning over appearances and convenience. They must resist the urge to buy shortcuts and instead teach the value of perseverance and academic excellence.

ALSO READ: 9 important questions to ask your child after school every day

Teachers and School Owners must rebuild the culture of discipline and meritocracy in education. Schools should be spaces for rigorous learning, and the Government must declare a state of emergency in education. It’s time for a massive investment in teacher training, digital learning tools, modern curricula, and the enforcement of educational standards.

Finally, the society at large must stop celebrating mediocrity. We need national role models who uphold education and integrity. The 2025 JAMB results is a mirror reflecting the health of our society, and if we continue to ignore the warning signs, we risk raising a generation unfit to move the nation forward.

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The dawn of the 21st century marked a dramatic turning point in Nigeria’s telecommunications industry.

Prior to 2001, mobile communication in Nigeria was a luxury. It was barely accessible, unreliable, and limited to a few thousand lines operated by the state-owned NITEL. But in 2001, with the introduction of the Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM), everything changed.

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The Birth of GSM in Nigeria

In 2001, under President Olusegun Obasanjo, the Nigerian government deregulated the telecom sector, inviting private players to transform a stagnant industry. This move led to a landmark auction of digital mobile licenses by the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC).

Three operators won the licenses: MTN Nigeria, Econet Wireless (now Airtel), and NITEL’s mobile arm, M-Tel. Each license cost $285 million and they had a 90-day deadline to launch services. This deregulation opened the doors to private investment and healthy competition in a sector that had been stagnant for decades.

Who Made The First GSM Call?

Two firsts were recorded, both symbolic of the mobile revolution. On May 6, 2001, Econet Wireless made Nigeria’s very first GSM call. This pioneering moment marked the technical birth of mobile communication in Nigeria. The-then Chairman Strive Masiyiwa, made the very first GSM call on May 6, 2001, to the NCC regulator, announcing, “We’re live!” In his own words,

I had the privilege of making Nigeria’s first GSM phone call back in 2001 when I called the regulator to say, ‘We’re live!’.

Reflecting on the historic moment, Masiyiwa described it as a symbol of enterprise in Africa. Ten days later on May 16, 2001, MTN Nigeria made its own historic first GSM call at Maritime House in Apapa, Lagos. By August 7, 2001, Econet began commercial operations, followed shortly by MTN.

Early GSM Experience

In the early days, owning a mobile phone was a status symbol because the cost of getting connected was extremely high and varied between providers.

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Econet Wireless charged:

• ₦15,000 connection fee

• ₦400 monthly access fee

• ₦15,000 for handsets

MTN Nigeria charged:

• ₦20,000 connection fee

• ₦4,000 access fee

• ₦20,000 for handsets

Despite the high costs, the demand was overwhelming. Nigerians were eager to ditch unreliable landlines for instant, mobile communication.

Following Econet and MTN, other players entered the scene. Globacom (Glo) launched in 2003 as Nigeria’s first indigenous operator. It revolutionized the market by offering free SIM cards and per-second billing. Etisalat (now 9mobile) joined in 2008, bringing a focus on data services and youth-friendly plans. These competitors intensified the race for market share, pushing down prices and improving service quality across the country.

Challenges Faced by Telecom Operators

Despite the success, telecom providers had to battle various challenges like:

• Unstable power supply, requiring heavy reliance on diesel generators

• Multiple taxation from federal, state, and local governments

• Security concerns, including vandalism of telecom infrastructure

• Foreign exchange volatility, which increased equipment costs

• Poor road access in rural areas, limiting infrastructure rollout

As of recent reports, the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) reports over 187 million active GSM subscribers compared to just 400,000 landlines before 2001. The evolution of GSM also paved the way for mobile banking, social media, online commerce, and digital learning. It has made life more connected and convenient.

Today, SIM cards cost under ₦100. Entry-level smartphones are widely available. Calls, SMS, and mobile data have become affordable, connecting people from all over… all of these was an unimaginable reality in 2001.

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My name is Tunde, and like thousands of young Nigerians, my biggest dream was to japa. I had applied for a UK visa three times, three painful rejections. Each time, the embassy returned my passport with that heart-crushing stamp: “Application Refused.”

One evening, after another rejection, my friend Emeka called me.

“Bro, you’re still struggling with visa? There’s one man in Ibadan, he works miracles. Just pay him, do the sacrifice, and your visa will come.”

I laughed. “Abeg, stop joking. Na scam.”

But Emeka insisted. “My cousin used him last year, two weeks after, visa came. Even the white people don’t understand how it works.”

A week later, I found myself in a dimly lit shrine somewhere in Ibadan. The air smelled of herbs and burnt offerings. The native doctor, a stout man with reddened eyes, sat on a wooden stool, chewing kola nuts.

“You want to travel?” he asked, already knowing my problem.

I nodded.

“₦2 million. I will prepare something powerful for you. The spirits will open doors.”

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₦2 million?! That was almost all my savings. But the way he said it… like it was a sure deal.

“If it doesn’t work?” I asked.

He smirked. “It will work. But if you doubt, walk away.”

Something in his confidence convinced me. Maybe it was frustration. Maybe it was the stories of people who “made it” after visiting him.

I paid.

He gave me a small black pot containing a strange-looking powder.

“Burn this at midnight. Speak your request to the flame. Then wash your face with the ashes the next morning.”

I followed his instructions like my life depended on it.

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Two weeks later, I got an email:

“Your UK visa application has been approved.”

I screamed. IT WORKED!

I called Emeka, overjoyed. “This native doctor is powerful! My visa cleared!”

But then… things got weird.

A week before my flight, I started having the same dream. A faceless woman standing at the foot of my bed, whispering: “You will pay… you will pay…”

I woke up sweating every night.

Then, the calls started. Unknown numbers. When I picked up, silence, followed by faint crying.

One evening, I saw her, the woman from my dreams, standing across the street, staring at me. I blinked, and she was gone.

Frightened, I went back to the native doctor.

This time, his demeanour was different. Cold.

“You got what you wanted, abi? Now, the spirit wants something too.”

“What spirit?!” I shouted.

He sighed. “The money you paid was just part. The real sacrifice is you.”

My blood went cold.

“What are you saying?”

“The spirit that helped you now owns you. If you travel, it will follow you. And one day, it will collect its payment.”

I tore my visa that night.

Some dreams aren’t worth the price.

Now, anytime I see those “Visa lottery” or “Spiritual visa help” ads, I shiver.

Because I know the truth. Some doors, once opened, can never be closed.

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