Bill to Stop HND-B.Sc. Discrimination Passes Second Reading
A Bill for an Act to Abolish and Prohibit Dichotomy and Discrimination between First Degrees (B.Sc.) and Higher National Diploma (HND) in the same Profession/Field and related matters on Tuesday passed its second reading at the House of Representatives.
The Bill, if passed into law, will end discrimination against Polytechnic graduates and remove the ceiling placed on HND holders, especially those in the public service.
Bill to Abolish HND-B.Sc. Discrimination Passes Second Reading
The Bill, sponsored by Hon. Ali Isa J.C from Gombe State and Edward Pwajok from Plateau State, is entitled ” A Bill for an Act to abolish the dichotomy between First Degrees and Higher National Diplomas in the same profession / field and for related matters”.
According to him, those with first degree are placed on Grade Level 8, while those with HND are placed on Grade Level 6 or 7.
He said that in some organisations, degree holders were paid N100, 000 at entry level, while their counterparts with HND were paid N70, 000.
But, the lawmaker said, in other countries, technical experts were paid higher than administrators, adding that “the reverse is the case in the country’’.
Speaker Yakubu Dogara, who presided over Tuesday’s plenary, later referred the Bill to the Committee on Tertiary Institutions and Services.
Please, stop this nonsense; there are other important issues you can discuss in that House and solve the problems therein.
A Degree is a Degree and a Diploma is a Diploma. Therefore a Diploma can NEVER be a Degree, whether Higher or Lower.
If you want to take a Degree course and earn a degree, you are free, and if you want a Diploma program, one is free also. But do not take a cut-and-join program for two years each time and want to equate it to a Degree. The philosophy establishing them as certification in education are not the same and will never be the same. The Degree is a prestigious certification and should not be bastardized by equating it with a glorified certificate in technical training in any profession. A degree holder is a philosopher and others are technicians, please, take note.
Please, go into the archives of the Ministry of Education and find out about this issue and also to JAMB and find out why entry cut off points are different for both programs. Check out the course contents and students’/grandaunts’ preparations, too. One is for high man-power development while the other is to fill the gap at middle man-power development level. These are a few highlights between the two. Can they be the same? Go into the internet and see the history of how they were founded and let the scales fall from your eye, so you can see clearly and know where and how to direct your energies. I pray you see very well!