By Anita John 
An illegal Nursing College, Tower College of Health, Science and Management, Gberigbe, Ikorodu, Lagos State, has been sealed by the authorities over allegations of running unaccredited academic programmes.
- College allegedly ran 24 unapproved courses.
- Enforcement team involved health and security agencies.
- Government begins wider probe into illegal institutions.
The owner of the college, Femi Adeigbe, who is said to be a poultry farmer, has also been arrested and detained by authorities of the Lagos State Government for questioning.
An investigative report by The Punch first exposed the activities of the college, which was admitting students and training them in 24 courses without formal accreditation from relevant authorities.
The report forced the combined officials from the Directorate of Nursing Services, Lagos Ministry of Health and the Nursing and Midwifery Committee of Lagos State, the National Association of Nigerian Nurses and Midwives, and the state Rapid Response Squad into action, leading to the sealing and arrest of its proprietor.
Director of Nursing Services in Lagos Ministry of Health, Sola Aketi, disclosed that the founder had earlier been warned but continued to operate illegally.
Aketi was quoted as saying, “The illegal institution will cease all nursing and educational activities with immediate effect. We will not stop until all such schools are shut down.”
The founder Adeigbe has been detained for questioning and faces possible prosecution while the Ministry of Education confirmed that a committee had been set up to investigate the case and trace other unaccredited schools across the state. A government official disclosed that the Department of State Services and other agencies were already collaborating with the ministry on the matter.
Checks showed that shortly after the exposé, Tower College’s website was hastily edited. The number of courses listed was reduced from 24 to 12, student figures dropped from 1,025 to 522, and Adeigbe’s name and photos were removed from online platforms.
The National President of the National Association of Nigerian Nurses and Midwives, Haruna Mamman, confirmed that the school was not recognised by the Nursing and Midwifery Council of Nigeria.
A check by official social media pages of Tower College of Health, Science and Management, Gberigbe, particularly on Facebook showed that the illegal private institution had matriculated several students.
Similarly, the social media profile of the institution also showed that it announced recruitment of lecturers into several new academic programmes in August 2024, including Nursing Science, Health Sciences, Communication and Media Management, Computer Science, and Management Science.
Education experts have called for strict sanctions against operators of illegal institutions. Public affairs analyst, Dr. Adeniyi Kunnu, blamed weak oversight and poor record keeping for the proliferation of such schools. He urged parents to verify accreditation status before enrolling their children.
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Editorial Staff