The Federal Government has told heads of tertiary institutions in the country to ensure the safety of students under them.

Minister of Education, Prof Ruqayattu Rafa'i, handed down the order in Ilorin, the Kwara State capital during the inauguration of the new Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) zonal office.

She used the occasion to condemn the killing of students in Mubi and four in University of Port Harcourt, describing them as unjustifiable under any guise.

Prof Rufa'i said: "I would like to remind vice chancellors, rectors and provosts that the safety of lives and properties under your headship should remain a major priority as we all know that without these souls and properties, there would be no basis for your appoinment in the first instance, therefore while we expect the law enforcement agencies to continue to carry out their statutory and constitutional responsibilities of protection of lives and properties, it should remain incumbent on the heads of the institutions to know that they have equal stake as law enforcement agents.

"The protection of lives and properties of your students, even when they live off campus should be of utmost concern, especially when it is not absolutely their choice to live off campus, but because we cannot afford to accommodate all of them on campus."

At the event, JAMB Registrar, Prof ‘Dibu Ojerinde, said the board would begin computer-based testing (CBT) for the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) next year.

He said: "The board shall be introducing CBT in our matriculation examination starting on a transitional scale in 2013 accommodating between 150,000 and 250,000 candidates in the first experiment next year and hopefully converting CBT for all candidates in 2015.

"We have identified testing centres for the 2013 transitional experiment all over the federation, including Kwara State, but these are inadequate for the envisaged full blown exercise in 2015. This is the way of the future and Nigeria cannot be left behind in ensuring that global best practices are achieved."

Ojerinde added that the board would soon start the construction of similar prototype buildings in Abia, Taraba, Benue, Kebbi and Kano states.

"We shall also commence the building of a model computer-based testing centre in Bwari which shall benchmark the building of similar centres all over the federation," he added.