By Ghazali Ibrahim
While the Kwara State Polytechnic community is celebrating the National Board for Technical Education’s (NBTE) full accreditation of its programmes and the approval of several new courses, one particular addition has left many Nigerians stunned, the introduction of a National Diploma (ND) in Law.
The announcement, made public on Monday through a statement from the institution’s spokesperson, Halima Garba, noted that the NBTE had given Kwara Poly the green light to commence various new ND and HND programmes in the 2025/2026 academic session.
Among the newly approved ND programmes are Medical Imaging, Health Information Management, Industrial and Labour Relations, and most notably, Law.
The inclusion of Law in a polytechnic curriculum has triggered widespread confusion and debate online, with many questioning the legitimacy and practicality of offering a law-related diploma in a technical institution.
“ND in Law? From a polytechnic? What exactly are they training students to become, para-lawyers?” one user wrote on X, expressing concern about the academic and professional direction of the course.
Another user remarked, “This is how we devalue education. Law is a professional degree course offered in universities. What will an ND in Law qualify someone to do?”
Others called on NBTE to clarify the scope and intent of the programme, fearing it could create a new wave of uncertified or misinformed legal practitioners.
Some even speculated that it might encourage unregulated legal practice.
“If this is allowed to stand, tomorrow we’ll have people with ND in Law appearing in court claiming to be legal experts. NBTE and the Polytechnic owe the public an explanation,” said a social media commentator.
However, some defenders of the move argued that the ND in Law could be targeted at legal clerks, paralegal assistants, or roles that support lawyers much like how HND holders in accountancy can support certified accountants.
Meanwhile, the institution’s management is yet to publicly address the controversy surrounding the Law programme specifically.
Rector Abdul-Jimoh Mohammed, in his broader remarks, praised the NBTE team for its thorough evaluation and promised to maintain high academic standards.
With the 2025/2026 session still months away, stakeholders are calling for clear curriculum guidelines and proper sensitisation to avoid misinterpretation of the scope and limitations of the newly introduced Law diploma.
