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Tag: JAMB

  • Scrap JAMB, says Bishop

    IN light of the corruption that has eaten deep into the fibre of most universities in the country, a cleric in Anambra State, Chris Abraham Udeh, has called for the scrapping of the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB).

    Again, Udeh, the General Overseer of Mount Zion Faith Global Liberation Ministries, (a.k.a By Fire By Fire) in Nnewi, urged President Mohammadu Buhari to beam his anti-corruption searchlight on universities.

    The cleric lamented the level of hardship that JAMB candidates are subjected to yearly, especially as many do not gain admission despite having good results.

    He said that the situation had led many young girls who were frustrated to go into prostitution and their male counterparts join robbery gangs.

    While speaking to reporters in Nnewi, he gave an example of a girl who complained to him that she had tried the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) six times without success and decided to travel to the city.  He was worried about her fate and others like her.

    The Bishop noted that to make matters worse, candidates who passed the UTME were still subjected to post-UTME, which he said could not be the true test of knowledge.

    Even when the “lucky” ones passed all these examinations, Udeh said they still faced the admission racketeers, including lecturers, who took advantage of their desperation for admission to milk them dry.

    “If you pass the UTME and post-UTME, people in the corridors of admission at the universities sometimes demand from N200, 000 to N500, 000 to give admission otherwise the chance of the candidate would be sold to another.

    “Education in Nigeria is now for the highest bidder. What a corrupt system,” the Bishop decried.

    He described the quota system in admission as marginalization, saying it should be dropped.

    He claimed that some Federal universities, especially in Anambra, charge as high as N500,000 to give admissions to students who did not pass, while those who got up to 70 per cent in Post-UTME would not be given admission.

  • JAMB: no malpractices so far in Ekiti

    The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) has said so far, no candidate has been caught for examination malpractices during the 2015/2016 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) in Ekiti State.

    The state’s JAMB Coordinator, Aliyu Jubril, said candidates have cooperated with the officials of the board since the examination commenced on Saturday, a move he said has enhanced the credibility of the examination.

    Jubril also said adequate facilities as well as security have been provided at the eight centres where the examination is holding.

    Some candidates told our reporter at the Federal Polytechnic, Ado Ekiti, that they were satisfied with the conduct of the exam.

    One of them, Sola Alabi, said the computer-based test has helped eliminate exam malpractice.

    Meanwhile Daleaware Institute of Technology, a centre in Palmgrove, Lagos, has debunked news on the social media that the centre barred Muslims wearing hijab from taking the examination.

    On Monday, there were reports that female Muslim candidates were told to remove their Hijab before being allowed into the centre.  There was a claim that a notice was placed at the centre that stated that hijabs were not allowed.

    A sibling of one of the girls alleged to have been affected, Olawale Bashua, said he put pressure on the centre to rescind the decision.

    “When I got to the scene, I learnt those who agreed to remove their hijab had gained entry into the hall.  I had earlier instructed my sister not to remove her hijab until I came around. I demanded to speak with the Jamb official; he told me that the matter was with the centre.

    “They later told me they would allow my sister to write her paper on personal and compassionate ground. I told them that I was not there for my sister alone but for all sisters in hijab. Later, another brother joined me. He went to the University of Lagos (UNILAG) to mobilise brothers and sisters to the centre. People were calling from different parts of the country. The management of the centre realised they may not be able to sustain the heat. They quickly rescinded their decision. We asked them to remove the message at their entrance which forbade the use of hijab. They swiftly complied,” he said.

    However, the institute debunked the claims. Its Coordinator, Mr Segun Babalola, said a disagreement ensued when a Muslim candidate declined being frisked by officials of the Nigerian Security and Civil Defense Corps (NSCDC).

    Babalola said: “There was nobody denied (from writing UTME). We have pictures of candidates who with their hijab wrote their examination on Monday and even on Saturday. This issue came up because of a Muslim girl who refused to subject herself to the security details. The Civil Defence officers were the ones who barred her from entering and not the management of this institute. She later allowed herself to be checked, after which she was allowed to enter and write the examination.”

    Babalola said it was the first time the centre would be accused of religious discrimination.

    “It is a fallacy as well as wrong allegation. We have evidence which you can see for yourself,” he said when The Nation visited the centre on Tuesday.

    He added: “This is JAMB examination. We have the Civil Defence Corps by the gate. They are the ones doing the checking. They are the ones who have the rights to admit or disallow anybody from coming in.”

    A female Muslim candidate, Ruquyat Munir, said she was not asked to remove her hijab.

    “I was not stopped from entering.  I was neither asked to remove my Hijab nor harassed in any way,” she said.

    Another candidate, Biliki Muhammed, said: “I was checked like the others. I was not harassed. I was taken to a corner where a female NSCDC official checked my scarf if I was hiding anything there. Thereafter, I was allowed to put it on and proceeded to write my examination.”

    JAMB’s Head of Media and Information, Dr Fabian Benjamin, said the board is not against any candidate wearing hijab or head scarfs during the examination, which ends on March 12, 2016.

    However, he said those with scarfs should submit themselves to security checks before accessing the UTME halls.

    “We are not against any one dressing in the manner that suits them, particularly if it has to do with one’s religious belief.

    “In every examination however, there are rules and candidates must strive to adhere to such rules.

    “We are not going to stop anyone from taking the examination but the rule remains that if one is wearing things such as scarfs and hijab, you must submit to security checks at such centre.

    “It is just a simple rule and candidates should trying and cooperate with the examiners to make it easy for us all,” he said.

     

  • Senate pegs JAMB application fee at N2,500

    Senate pegs JAMB application fee at N2,500

    The Senate on Wednesday pegged the fee payable to Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) at N2, 500.

    The upper chamber also extended JAMB entrance examination validity period to three years from one year.

    The resolutions followed the submission and consideration of the report on JAMB admission policies submitted by the Chairman, Senate Committee on Tertiary Institutions and TETFUND, Senator Binta Masi Garba.

    JAMB applicants’ currently pay N5, 650 to obtain JAMB application forms.

    The upper chamber also said that its relevant committees should work to ensure the amendment of JAMB Act to reflect resolutions.

    The Senate adopted the recommendation of its committee that JAMB fee should not exceed N2,500, while institution and course forms and all other incidental activities around the examination should be free.

    The Senate on November 17, 2015 adopted a resolution and directed its committee on tertiary institutions and TETFund to inquire into circumstances surrounding the new JAMB policy including allegations of favouritism as well as review of JAMB admission.

    The new JAMB policy entails that a candidate will make a choice of one university, one polytechnic and one college of education and then sit for a computer based test (CBT) to gain admission into any tertiary institution in the country.

     

  • JAMB insists no bags, gadgets allowed in UTME centres

    JAMB insists no bags, gadgets allowed in UTME centres

    Candidates sitting for the 2016 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) have been warned to take only their e-registration slips and biros to examination centres.

    The examination gets fully  under way today, with candidates expected to sit for two or three sessions daily.

    Though the instructions are stated on the e-slips that bags, gadgets, calculators and phones are not allowed, many candidates took them to centres monitored in Lagos on Saturday, where 30 of the 53 centres held one session of the examination.

    However, they were forced to keep their property outside, some with strangers.

    Many were also sent away to re-print their e-registration slips because they brought the wrong ones to the centres.

    Dr. Beatrice Okorie, who heads the Lagos annex of the Joint Admissions and Matriculations Board (JAMB) headquarters, said they were not expected to come with the items.

    “The instructions were clear.  But many of them still came with bags and phones.  We sent them away to go drop their bags,” said Dr. Okorie, who supervised the centre at the Yaba College of Technology (YABATECH).

    Regarding the correct e-registration slip, she said: “Before the examination commenced, the candidates were supposed to re-print their e-registration slips because the first one does not contain their centre and examination numbers.  That was why some who did not were told to re-print the correct one,” she said.

    At the West Midland Communication Limited Centre in Ikeja, candidates with bags and others were also sent away.

    The officials told parents to give their wards fare and leave.

    However, some parents ignored the advice and waited outside the premises for the 2-hour 45 minutes duration of the examination.  They helped to keep property for some candidates as well.

    The examination was hitch-free in many centres across Lagos.  However, there was a problem at Universal White Hall College in Fagba, Iju. Candidates were relocated to Bachel Model College, Ogba.

    The reason for the change was not explained to candidates and their parents grumbled about the last minute change, made at 10 am.

    Efforts to speak with the school officials proved abortive, as the headteacher, Mrs. Temilola, neither answered her phone nor showed up.

    A parent, Mrs. Adesanya, said: “It is bad that they changed it like that without any warning. It was difficult finding this new venue but thank God we are here now and everything is going on well.”

    But Bachel Model College was ready by the time the candidates reached there.  The college is supposed to serve as a UTME centre from March 7.

    The headteacher, Mr. Adekunle Adeleke, said the school responded to a distress call from Universal White Hall College a few minutes before 9 am.

    “They said they were experiencing technical issues at Universal White Hall College. I don’t know what it was but I think it had to do with their router. So, we gathered our staff impromptu and got things set. Lucky for us, we were prepared,” he said.

    Adeleke said the college had facilities for 270 candidates, and additional 30 computers as backups.

    The school’s proprietor, Mr. Ayokunle Fasusi, said it took between N8 and N9 million to get the centre ready to host UTME.

    “By the time the exam was over, the JAMB officials gave us an excellent grade in their report,” he said.

    The exams held between noon and 2 pm at Bachel and there were no hitches.

    While only one session of the examination held on Saturday, from today, Dr. Okorie said there would be two or three sessions daily for the 14-day duration.

    Besides the 30 split 1 centres, Dr. Okorie said there were 23 Split 2 centres in Lagos, which will start conducting the examination from March 7, 2016.

    The examination is expected to end on March 11.

  • JAMB: Lagos cancels February monthly sanitation

    The Lagos State Government (LASG) on Friday lifted the restriction order on human and vehicular movements during this month’s environmental sanitation slated for February 27.

    The order was to allow students, invigilators and other stakeholders participate effectively in the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) organised by the Joint Admission and Matriculation Board (JAMB).

    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the examination was expected to hold across the country on Saturday, Feb. 27.

    Mr. Tunde Awobiyi, the Information Officer, Lagos State Ministry of the Environment, made this known in a statement he signed and released to newsmen on Friday.

    The statement said that the Commissioner for the Environment, Dr Babatunde Adejare, had directed residents of the state to still observe the day by cleaning their homes and environments.

    Adejare said that it became imperative for the state government to waive the restriction so as not to jeopardise the future of the candidates whose counterparts in other parts of the federation would write the same examination.

    “As a responsible and responsive government, we value the education of our children very dearly and, therefore, resolved to relax the order in the interest of the leaders of tomorrow,” he said.

    He urged residents of the state to actively participate in this month’s sanitation, despite the lifting of the restriction of movement order.

    “We should concentrate on cleaning of drains in our frontages as we are gradually approaching the rainy season.

    “ The issue of sanitation has become very critical, especially with the geometrically rising population of the state, thus making the regular clean-up necessary for a healthier, cleaner and sustainable environment.

    “As we gradually approach the rainy season, Lagosians should shun acts that can contribute to flooding by not dumping their wastes in unauthorised places like canals and drainage channels.

    “Lagosians should not patronise cart pushers who end up dumping the wastes into canals and the lagoon, this is how we can all assist to make the state de-flooding programme a success,’’ he said.

    He urged all Lagosians to rise up and take sanitation of their environments very important adding that, “This is one of the practical measures that can guarantee a flood-free Lagos.”

    The commissioner said that the state government had embarked on continuous clearing, maintenance and dredging of canals across the state to pre-empt the incidences of flooding.

    Adejare admonished Lagosians to bag their refuse properly to allow for easy collection and disposal to designated landfill sites by Lagos Waste Management Authority (LAWMA) and the Private Sector Participation (PSP) operators.

    The commissioner also assured Lagosians that LAWMA would deploy men and equipment to ensure quick evacuation of waste generated during the exercise.

  • JAMB gives candidates 48 hours to complete late registration

    JAMB gives candidates 48 hours to complete late registration

    THE Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB)  has given two days to candidates, who could not upload and complete their registration process, to do so.

    The board, in a statement issued in Abuja yesterday by its Head of Media, Dr. Fabian Benjamin, said  its website would be opened to candidates from midnight yesterday till tomorrow’s midnight for them to complete and upload all late registration.

    JAMB said the new development would not cover fresh candidates, who were yet to begin the registration process.

    The statement said arrangements have been made for the start of the 2016 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examinations (UTME).

    The board urged all candidates to print their examination slips to know the date of their examinations, venue and time allotted to them.

    The statement reads: “The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board hereby direct all candidates  who have initiated the process of registration for the 2016 UTME, but  couldn’t upload and complete their registration process as at Friday  February 5, 2016 to do so within 48 hours starting from 12 midnight on  Tuesday February 23, 2016 when the website will be opened to 12 midnight  on Thursday February 25, 2016.

  • Candidates get extra 48 hours to complete JAMB registration

    The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) ‎has given candidates who could not upload and complete their registration process two days to do so.

    The board, in a statement issued in Abuja on Tuesday by its Head of Media, Dr. Fabian Benjamin, said‎ that its website would be open to candidates from 12:00am on Tuesday to 12:00am on Thursday for candidates to complete and upload all late registration.

    JAMB said the new development does not cover fresh candidates who are yet to begin the registration process.

    The statement said all arrangements have been made for the commencement of the 2016 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examinations (UTME).

    The board urged all candidates to print their examination slips to know the date of their examinations, venue and time allotted to them.

    The statement reads: “The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board hereby direct all candidates ‎who have initiated the process of registration for the 2016 UTME but ‎couldn’t upload and complete their registration process as at Friday 5th ‎February, 2016 to do so within 48 hours starting from 12 midnight on ‎Tuesday, 23rd February 2016 when the website will be opened to 12 midnight ‎on Thursday, 25th February, 2016 when the website will be closed.

    “The Board wishes to state that the directive doesn’t cover fresh ‎registration but only those who had either done offline registration or ‎visited our website but could submit.

    “The Board wishes to state that all arrangements for the 2016 UTME have been ‎completed and examination will commence as earlier stated.

    “Candidates are also urged to print their examination slips for the schedules ‎of their date, venue, time allotted to them and other necessary informations.‎”

     

  • No extension of deadline for UTME, says JAMB

    No extension of deadline for UTME, says JAMB

    THE Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB)  said yesterday it would not extend its registration deadline for candidates yet to register.

    The examination body was reacting to protests by secondary school pupils in Edo and Lagos states on the closure of registration portal ahead of the 2016 examination.

    A statement by Head of Media for JAMB, Dr. Fabian Benjamin, in Abuja yesterday, said the board sympathised with the candidates, who were given about seven months to register.

    It said the board needed to prepare for the UTME, which will be Computer-Based Test (CBT) mode expected to begin on Monday.

    Some students on Friday in the two states protested an alleged sudden closure of the JAMB online registration portal by the examination body.

    The statement reads: “The attention of the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board has been drawn to the protest by some alleged UTME candidates in Benin and Lagos.  The candidates were said to be protesting the closure of the board’s registration portal in preparation for the 2016 Examination, which is due to begin in less than a week.

    “The board sympathises  with the plight of these candidates and states as it is the wish of the board that Nigerians desirous of tertiary education are given opportunity to register for its examination, which was why it began the sale of its application documents last August, about seven months ago.

    “In the advertisement for sale of the registration documents, the board stated that the sale would close by January, but due to appeal, it extended the registration process to February.”

    The statement explained that the portal was close to allow the board prepare for the examination  slated for the end of February, emphasising that the board will not allow candidates to register perpetually.

    The board said it was unfortunate that some candidates waited until their website was withdrawn before making attempts to register.

     The board added that over 1.5 million candidates applied for the examination and that it made preparation for them to sit for the exercise.

    “There are no special centres anymore because they are being used as insecurity avenues,” the statement added.

    The statement said JAMB was working “tirelessly to conduct one of the best examinations globally”.

    On the posting of some candidates to far distances, JAMB said: “The board will like to correct the misconception created by candidates that the board posted them to far away centres. The board doesn’t post candidates to examination towns. Candidates chose the town of their choice while we send them to centres within their chosen towns,” it added.

  • 184 visually impaired to write 2016 UTME 

    184 visually impaired to write 2016 UTME 

    No fewer than 184 visually impaired students have registered for the 2016 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) to be conducted later in February.

    Mr. Clement Ojo, a Senior Administrative Officer of the board, disclosed this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Monday in Lagos.

    He spoke to NAN on the sideline of a one-day sensitisation exercise for the visually impaired candidates taking place simultaneously across the six geo-political zones nationwide.

    According to him, more than 55 of the candidates, who registered for the examination in Lagos State, are being trained on how to use the new Braille Note Apex machine in preparation for the UTME.

    NAN reports that five officials from the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB), including Ojo, participated in the demonstration exercise held at the Bethesda Home for the Blind in Lagos.

    The candidates are drawn from various schools in Lagos, including; four from King’s College Lagos and three from the Federal Government College (FGC), Ijanikin in Lagos.

    NAN also reports that the use of the Braille Note machine was demonstrated to the registered candidates to acquaint them with it before the examination.

    Ojo said that the machines were procured to accommodate the visually impaired candidates in the all Computer Based Test (CBT) platform.

    He said the machines would enable the special candidates to read and answer questions via voice or braille, hence making the examination all inclusive for all categories of candidates.

    Ojo told NAN that the special candidates have been responding positively to the exercise.

    “They have not given us cause to worry.

    “We have 20 machines, out of which five were deployed to Lagos centre to prepare the special candidates ahead of the examination.

    “The candidates are being taken in a batch of five, for effective demonstration and mastery.

    “We hope to procure more machines as we progress, so that we can accommodate more of the visually impaired candidates in the examination all in one sitting,’’ he said.

    While sharing his experience, Emeka Okeke, a visually impaired SSS 3 student of King’s College, described the exercise as a welcome development.

    “The experience is wonderful because to me, it is a discovery of something new.

    “With this, my confidence for the examination has been boosted a great deal and I thank the organisers for making this possible,’’ he said.

    Mrs. Chioma Ohakwe, the Proprietress of the Home, also commended JAMB for the gesture.

    She, however, pleaded the board to donate one of the machines to the home.

    NAN recalls 194 blind students sat for the examination last year, as against 184 so far registered this year.

  • UTME to hold between Feb and March, says JAMB

    UTME to hold between Feb and March, says JAMB

    The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) said yesterday it would conduct the 2016 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) between February and March.

    According to a statement by its Head of Media and Information, Dr Fabian Benjamin in Lagos, the Computer-Based Test (CBT) exam would hold in over 400 centres within and outside Nigeria.

    He added: “JAMB has approved more centres to give Nigerians the best computer-based test.

    “The board insisted that these centres must meet best global requirements.

    “Some of the requirements are steady power supply, 200 computers, including Uninterrupted Power Supply (UPS), accessible road, security and a waiting room.

    “This year, there are innovations to ensure candidates write under the conditions.’’

    The board said sale of forms closes on Friday.

    It noted that  new measures would be introduced to ensure the board remains top in assessment and measurement.