N100,000 for Grades: Kwara Nursing College Turns Nursing Education into a Corrupt Marketplace
By Fellow Nurses Africa | September 25, 2025
The Kwara State College of Nursing Sciences and Midwifery, Oke-Ode, envisioned as a cornerstone of excellence in nursing education, is now mired in a shocking scandal that betrays the ethics of the nursing profession. An exclusive investigation by SaharaReporters has exposed allegations of systemic corruption, with Provost Mr. Abdulquadri Olanrewaju accused of orchestrating a scheme where academic success is sold for bribes as high as N100,000, turning nursing education into a corrupt marketplace. Such practices not only undermine the institution’s integrity but also violate the core ethical principles of fairness, competence, and trust that define nursing.
Extortion and Manipulation Undermine Education
Insiders at the college revealed a pervasive culture of extortion, where examinations and admissions are allegedly manipulated for financial gain and political influence. Students face demands for bribes ranging from N50,000 to N100,000 to secure passing grades or progress to the next stage of training. According to sources, up to 400 students in a class are coerced into paying N100,000 to pass exams, regardless of their performance. Even students who excel through merit are reportedly failed if they refuse to comply, as the administration manipulates results at will.
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A particularly egregious case involved a female student whose mother, a petty trader, borrowed from a microfinance lender to pay a N50,000 bribe. Despite initially seeing a “pass” result, the student’s grade was later altered to “fail” after payment, with no refund offered despite desperate pleas from her family. This predatory system has fostered an atmosphere of fear, with some students leveraging affiliations with the provost to intimidate peers, confident their grades are secure.
Admissions Tainted by Nepotism
The corruption extends to the admissions process, where the provost is accused of bypassing merit-based selection. Allegedly, Olanrewaju personally curates lists of preferred candidates for submission to the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB), a claim that can be verified through JAMB records. This practice undermines fairness and erodes trust in the institution’s ability to produce qualified nurses.
Provost’s Appointment Under Scrutiny
The controversy is compounded by questions surrounding Olanrewaju’s appointment in October 2022. The Nursing and Midwifery Council of Nigeria (NMCN) mandates that a provost hold a degree in Nursing, yet Olanrewaju reportedly admitted in his CV that his B.Sc. in Nursing from the National Open University of Nigeria is “ongoing,” with another degree from Malaysia “in view.” Critics argue this renders his appointment unlawful, raising accusations of fraud and forgery that further tarnish the institution’s credibility.
A Betrayal of Nursing Ethics
The Kwara State College of Nursing was established to produce nurses who are academically sound, morally upright, and professionally impeccable. However, these allegations of bribery, nepotism, and result manipulation represent a profound betrayal of the ethical standards upheld by the nursing profession.
The NMCN’s code of conduct emphasizes integrity, accountability, and competence, principles that are blatantly violated when academic success is reduced to financial transactions. Such practices jeopardize the quality of nursing education and, ultimately, patient care in Nigeria’s healthcare system.
Call for Accountability and Justice
Fellow Nurses Africa urgently calls on the Nursing and Midwifery Council of Nigeria (NMCN) to verify these allegations and ensure justice is served. The NMCN must investigate the reported exam manipulations, extortion, and the provost’s questionable qualifications to uphold the profession’s ethical standards.
Additionally, the Kwara State Government and relevant authorities must conduct a thorough probe to address this systemic corruption.
The nursing profession, built on trust and service, cannot tolerate such violations of its core values. The NMCN’s intervention is critical to restoring integrity to the Kwara State College of Nursing and ensuring that future nurses are trained in an environment of fairness and excellence.
For further details on this unfolding scandal, refer to the original investigation by SaharaReporters.
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