The most embarrassing problem facing tertiary institutions in Nigeria today is the imminence and aggressiveness of cult members and cult-related movements. Never before has the eventuality of the destruction of lives and property on premises been so great or escalated so fast and horribly as it is now.

There’s hardly an academic session with no reported cases of cultism in most Nigerian institutions. There are a few Nigerian institutions of advanced literacy that have not endured the imminence of cultism for some time now. As of August 3, 2022, 234 scholars and lecturers have died on Nigerian premises as a result of cult-related violent clashes.

The recent destructive cult activity on campuses is mind-boggling, prickly, and nauseating. The lives of promising young men and women have been cut short by the bloody hands of murderous cultists in a school on-premises.

A secret cult is any form of organization whose training isn’t only kept from the knowledge of others but similarly carried out at odd hours of the day, and they frequently conflict with the accepted norms and values of everyday life.

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In summary, cultism can be defined as a ritual practiced by a group of people whose class, admission, policy, and inauguration formalities, as well as their mode of operations, are done in secret and kept secret, with their actions having negative effects on both members and non-members alike.

The History of Cult in Nigerian Tertiary Institutions

Cultism in Nigeria dates back to pre-colonization when a group of people with the main goal of seeking protection from their ancestors conducted rituals. Secret religions have always existed in numerous corridors of the country. The origin of cultism in universities was traced to the Seadog confraternity (a.k.a. the Pyrates), invented by Wole Soyinka and six others at the University of Ibadan in 1952. 

The peaceful and non-violent confraternity set up also, in the 1980s, transubstantiated into a secret cult whose activity has been characterized by some crazy and violent acts within the polytechnic.

The significant causes of cultism in tertiary institutions were 

• The influence of peer groups 
• Parental background; 
• Societal degeneration; 
• Corrosion of educational norms 
• Demilitarization of the Nigerian polity; 
• Lack of recreational facilities.
• Hunting for power and protection, among others. 

Still, some of the consequences of cultism include 

• Loss of life. 
• Properties and monetary loss. 
• Poor academic results and performance 
• unsafe university surroundings.

It is therefore recommended that all the stakeholders in the university education system should fuse their thoughts to create a collective solution to this issue. It is also recommended that the government should be more aggressive in its hunt to annihilate cultism in Nigeria. 

Polytechnic with the highest rate of cultism on campus.

 1. Federal polytechnic Yaba 

The academy was established in 1947 as an immediate successor to Yaba College of Technology. The academy attained independent and independent status in 1969 and gives full-time and part-time courses of instruction and training in Technology, Applied to Science, Commerce, and Management, and in similar other fields of applied literacy applicable to specialized, vocational, and artificial requirements in Nigeria. The college is well known both within and outside Nigeria as a pacemaker and a unique center for learning and teaching. It has forged ahead and dislocated itself as an institution of class and excellence, but with a high rate of the Sea Dogs cult group on the campus.

2. Federal Polytechnic Ilaro (FPI)

FPI is arguably one of the most cult student-filled polytechnics in Nigeria, located in Ogun State, Southwestern Nigeria. The institution was established in 1979 and since then has acquired the character of a definitive institution, educating and training scholars in five faculties. These are Engineering, Environmental Studies, Communication and Information Technology, Management Studies, and Pure and Applied Science. Their female students are known as the Amazon Queen and Red Jebel.

 3. Federal Polytechnic Bauchi 

The Federal Polytechnic, Bauchi( FPTB), was established in July 1979. It occupies 750 hectares of land in Gwallameji village along the Bauchi–Dass road in Bauchi megalopolis. The academy is one of the best polytechnics not only in northern Nigeria but in Nigeria as a whole in 2020, with a moderate level of activity in the buccaneer community.

4. Lagos State Polytechnic 

Lagos State Polytechnic, popularly known as LASPOTECH, is a government-owned tertiary institution located in Ikorodu, Lagos State. This campus has had many cases of cults between different families. They believe that you have to belong to survive. The institution offers National Diploma and Higher National Diploma courses at the undergraduate level and is among the leading polytechnics in Nigeria. 

5. Ibadan Polytechnic 

The Polytechnic, Ibadan( generally called “Poly Ibadan”) is one of the most illustrious institutions of advanced literacy in Ibadan, Oyo State, Nigeria. Ibadan Poly was invented in 1970. The institution was established to give an advantage to universities, particularly in specialized skill access. The Polytechnic Ibadan has produced numerous prominent Nigerians. This campus is the home of cultism in Nigeria, as it is the headquarters of the cult fathers in Nigeria. The cults located there are Pyrates Confraternity, Black Axe, and their female counterparts. 

6. Moshood Abiola Polytechnic 

Moshood Abiola Polytechnic, also known as MAPOLY, is a tertiary literacy institution in Abeokuta, Ogun State, Nigeria, and it also houses a good number of black bra female cult groups in Nigeria. The academy makes it to the webometrics list of the polytechnics in 2020. 

7. Federal Polytechnic, Ede 

Federal Polytechnic, Ede is a Nigerian tertiary institution that was established in 1992. It’s located in Ede, a city in Osun State, southwestern Nigeria. It’s a National Diploma awarding institution and has continued to improve on its standards time after time. This time in 2020, the academy was ranked among the top 10 with its cult activities in the Nigerian polytechnic. 

8. Petroleum Training Institute 

The Petroleum Training Institute in Effurun, Delta State was established in 1973 by the civil government of Nigeria as a prerequisite for the class in the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries. Some of their departments include Petroleum & Natural Gas Processing(PNGPD), Industrial Safety and Environmental Technology(ISET), Petroleum Marketing and Business Studies(PMBS), Petroleum Engineering and Geosciences (PEG), Electrical Engineering( EED), etc. Due to the dispute over the Niger Delta, the Black Axe movement came and was rooted in the Delta State and started its movement in the institution.

9. The Institute of Management Technology, Enugu 

The Institute of Management Technology, Enugu is a polytechnic college located in Enugu State, Nigeria. The academy has many activities on the school premises, as they are the head branch for the German lord and Black Axes. They believe in lying low and keeping their activities off camp.

10. Federal Polytechnic Bida 

The Federal Polytechnic Bida was established in 1977. The academy is a cult minority tertiary institution positioned in Bida, Niger State, Nigeria. There are seven faculties the school of applied and natural sciences; the school of business administration; the school of engineering technology; school of general studies; the school of environmental studies; the school of financial studies; and the school of information and communication studies. They have the structure of respecting their lords in order to avoid disputes in the school.

11. Federal Polytechnic, Oko 

Federal Polytechnic, Oko is a Nigerian polytechnic based in Oko, Anambra State. It was previously known as the College of Arts, Science, and Technology. The academy is one of the modern polytechnics in Nigeria. Recently, Okoh has been on the rise for cultism in the state as they are interlinked with Biafra sit at home, making the campus a small war zone.

12. Federal Polytechnic, Offa 

The main campus of the polytechnic is located about 6.5 kilometers from Offa city center on the Offa–Ojoku Road, while the mini campus is located at the southern end of Offa city along the Offa–Osogbo Road. From this humble beginning, the Polytechnic has developed to its present state with 25 programs offered at the National Diploma( ND) level, 18 at the Advanced National Diploma( HND) level, as well as Pre-ND programs in trades and science. The students of this institution are proud to belong to their respective cult families but try to maintain peace with the school structure.

14. Kaduna Polytechnic (polykad) 

Kaduna Polytechnic isn’t only one of the contemporary polytechnics in Nigeria but one of the foremost polytechnics in Nigeria, located at Tudun Wada area of Kaduna South original government of Kaduna state, North- Western Nigeria. It was established in 1956 as Kaduna Technical Institute after the British Government accepted the elevation of Yaba Higher College to a specialized institute and also proposed the establishment of specialized institutes in Kaduna and Enugu through the recommendation of the Higher Education Commission. Currently, students at PolyKad have sought refuge in cult groups because of the insurgency in the north of Nigeria. Hence, they take solace in their family because of protection.

14. Federal Polytechnic Idah 

The Federal Polytechnic, Idah is built on the gospel of “Technology for Self Reliance”. In other words, it’s erected to make job generators rather than job campaigners. The technology of self-reliance, which has been misplaced, has become the code of language between the cult groups in Idah and has led to the loss of life and property. Since its establishment in 1977, the Polytechnic has been seeking to keep faith with this vision with the goal of meeting the bournes and dreams of the founding fathers. The anteceding being top precedence, the Polytechnic is presently in another period of metamorphosis with a six-point plan of action for staff and pupil welfare and security.

15. Imo State Polytechnic, Umuagwo Ohaji 

Imo State Polytechnic the place you want to be? If you value veritably small class sizes, close connections with faculty and fellow scholars, inventions, and a grueling yet probative academic terrain with broad undergraduate exploration and skill accession openings. With over 4,000 talented undergraduate scholars and over 2,000 vibrant, immature, and talented undergraduates, The Polytechnic is known for its stimulating, resourceful, technology-acquainted, and cooperative terrain in the classroom, on and off- a lot, all over the confederation. However, despite all the good they have done, they still struggle with cult clashes and their activities on campus.

Summary 

Cultism in Nigerian polytechnics has caused students’ and parents’ hearts to hurt because they are continuously concerned for their kids.

in order to stop cult activity. In the country’s basic and secondary institutions, moral education ought to be made mandatory.

To properly care for their children’s emotional, psychological, and physical needs, parents should spend time getting to know their kids.