•Chidoka, Sowore and Adeyanju
Reactions have begun pouring in after the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) admitted today that system errors were responsible for the mass failure experienced during the recently held Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME).
JAMB registrar, Prof Ishaq Oloyede, said candidates from the South East and Lagos were affected. Oloyede apologised for the errors, adding that the candidates would be contacted to retake the examination, reports Vanguard.
In a statement, the former Minister of Aviation, Osita Chidoka, lauded the board for upholding institutional integrity.
“I commend JAMB for its consistent commitment to upholding institutional integrity. Unlike many other public agencies, JAMB did not resort to the all-too-familiar refrain of ‘Go to court,’” he wrote.
“Instead, it acknowledged its shortcomings, invited critical stakeholders for dialogue, and subjected its internal processes to external review.”
Chidoka extended solidarity and best wishes to the affected candidates ahead of the retest.
Former presidential candidate and publisher of Sahara Reporters, Omoyele Sowore, in a post on X, called for the abolishment of JAMB.
“Time to scrap these extracurricular bureaucratic busybodies …JAMB, NYSC, TETFUND, NELFUND, they are all useless!” he wrote.
Lawyer and activist, Deji Adeyanju, reacted to Prof Oloyede’s tears at the press conference organised by the examination board. He humorously said the chairman of Nigeria’s electoral umpire, Prof Mahmood Yakubu, would weep as well in 2027.
“Na so INEC chair go burst into tears in 2027,” he wrote in Pidgin English.
