…Says 1.94m Candidates Sat For Examination
The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board(JAMB) said on Wednesday that two suspects – a father and his son were arrested over their alleged involvement in impersonation during the 2024 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination(UTME).
This was just as the Board added that no fewer than 1.94 million candidates sat for the examination across the country.
The JAMB Registrar, Prof. Ishaq Oloyede disclosed these shortly after monitoring the exam at the Kaduna State University CBT centre, Kaduna.
He noted that at the end of the examination on Wednesday, there would be less than 100,000 candidates remaining in Lagos, Benue and other states in the country.
He added that the Board’s improved technology made the exercise smoother and faster.
“Today, I have seen something which we need to improve on but most importantly, we have done so many things in the background to make the exercise faster, more efficient and better. We have increased the level of automation,” he added.
The JAMB boss who frowned at those who cheated during the ongoing examinations warned that cheating does not pay.
Speaking further, Oloyede added that one of the the major challenges the Board encountered during the 2024 UTME exercise, was that of impersonation, saying that in one of the states, a father was caught impersonating his own son.
While highlighting other challenges faced by the Board, Oloyede said there were also cases of candidates having double National Identification Number (NIN), adding that JAMB would take up the issue with the National Identity Management Commission(NIMC).
Although the JAMB boss neither gave the names of the parent and his son nor the state in which the alleged malpractice took place, he said, “for those who engage in cheating, they should know that it does not pay. Technology is helping to check that.
The JAMB Registrar also commended parents for their behaviour during the conduct of the 2024 UTME exercise, noting that there were no parents intrusion unlike the previous year where some parents flucked the various Computer-Based Centres during the exams.
“There is no report this year of parents intruding, except one state. In that state, they felt that since the first session failed, their children should not continue with the second or other sessions,” he added.
Oloyede also used the opportunity to inform those that have missed the exam, for reasons not caused by the Examination body, to forget about it, saying that, JAMB cannot spend tens of millions of the nation’s resources to reorganize a session for few candidates who missed the exams due to their personal recklessness.
He also warned that UTME was not a school based examination, as such, the Board would not be responsible for any failure caused to candidates who registered through their secondary schools who either deliberately or due to logistics challenges could not get the candidates to meet their requirements.
“Most of those candidates who missed the UTME are students from hostels who were made to register through schools because of the money the schools want to collect from the parents in the name of JAMB, would now put 30 students in one bus.
“They will now be dropping them in different locations. By the time they get to the last student’s centre, he is already late for the exam. You will now see principal writing to me. What business do I have with a school?,” he asked.