Mr Josiah said the claims made by NANS are untrue and that the new policy has been misinterpreted.
The Teachers Registration Council of Nigeria (TRCN) has clarified the controversy surrounding its latest policy on the validity of the Professional Qualifying Examination (PQE) for teachers.
The TRCN Registrar, Josiah Ajiboye, a professor, said the agency recently limited the waiting period allowed between passing the PQE exams and the collection of certificates.
The PQE is a mandatory test to qualify for a teaching job in Nigeria. It is taken by graduates with Bachelor of Education degrees or the National Certificate of Education (NCE).
He said the clarifications became necessary due to certain claims by the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS), accusing the agency of creating bottlenecks for teacher registration.
NANS opposes policy
A statement by NANS Senate President, Akinteye Babatunde, claimed that the new policy would further impoverish Nigerian teachers and lead to a shortage of teachers as many may fail to renew their certificates.
Mr Babatunde said the policy failed to take into account the status of an average Nigerian student and the realities of Nigeria's present economy.
He added that the new policy is not "student-friendly and is totally unacceptable."
Clarifications
TRCN Registrar, Mr Adeboye, however, clarified that the TRCN certificate is obtained once in a lifetime and renewed every three years just like other professions.
He said the claims made by NANS are untrue and that the new policy has been misinterpreted.
Mr Ajiboye said the new policy means that teachers who have passed the PQE must apply for their certificates within a year otherwise they would have to rewrite the PQE.
"We have noticed that many people who passed the TRCN exam fail to register after collecting their certificates. Some who passed the exam hold on to the results for several years and refuse to register. So the reason we bring the new policy is that every person with their certificates must register within a year," he said.
Mr Ajiboye further explained that the management of the council met late last year and directed the State Coordinators to inform all institutions and other stakeholders that the TRCN results will now be valid for 1 year.
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"For clarity, the new policy is that the TRCN PQE result is only valid for 1 year for anyone to obtain a TRCN certificate," he added.
NANS responds, threatens protests
In response to Mr Josiah's clarifications, NANS doubled down on its earlier stance.
NANS insisted the policy was not in the best interest of the education sector in Nigeria.
The student body also threatened a demonstration should the TRCN not rescind the policy in five days.
"The Director is given five days to retract his statements and re-address the issue, or face the wrath of the Nigerian students, who will be forced to take to the streets in protest," parts of a statement shared with this newspaper by the NANS President, Mr Babatunde, read.
"The claim that the TRCN examination will expire after one year is not only inhumane but also impractical and unreasonable."
He said it is 'unreasonable' to expect teachers to constantly retake their TRCN examinations when they fail to request their certificates within a year, as this would put an undue financial burden on them and would take time away from their teaching duties.
He said: "We, the students of Nigeria, stand in solidarity with our teachers and will not tolerate the implementation of such a policy. If the Director does not retract his statements within the next five days, we will be forced to take to the streets in protest. We will not stand by and watch while our teachers are treated unfairly and their hard-earned certificates are rendered useless. It is our right to receive quality education, and this can only be achieved if our teachers are treated with dignity and respect. We will not stand for anything less."
