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Tag: Prof. Dibu Ojerinde

  • I am leaving JAMB better than I met it- Ojerinde

    I am leaving JAMB better than I met it- Ojerinde

    A former Registrar, Joint Matriculations and Admission Board (JAMB), Prof. Dibu Ojerinde, on Tuesday said he was leaving the board better than he met it after nine years in charge.

    Prof. Ojerinde told reporters at a dinner organized to honour him in Abuja that he had done virtually everything he needed to do to move the board forward.

    According to him, his achievements could only be built upon by the new JAMB registrar, Prof. Ishaq Oloyede, who took over from him last week.

    He urged management of the board to continue to work to keep the philosophy on which JAMB was established.

    Prof. Ojerinde said: “I feel good that I am leaving JAMB better than we all met it that time. I am sure the person who has come to takeover is going to be as good if not better than I am.

    “I have done everything I wanted to do. There is no other thing I want to do and that is why God says it is time for me to leave. That is it. No more.

    “Through the grace of God a lot of things have been done. My wish is that the management should continue the way they use to do it. We used to have a philosophy of yes you can do it and things are been made possible.

    Ojerinde denied media reports that he was sacked by Minister of Education, Mallam Adamu Adamu, over 2016 admission list.

    “I was not removed because of that. After all I was not the only one replaced. 17 of us were replaced so why should I be removed? I don’t think I was removed because of that,” he said.

    On reverting to paper and pencil test (PPT) as being clamoured by stakeholders, the former JAMB registrar noted that it would be one step forward and two steps backwards to embark on such decision.

    “May God forbid going backwards. We will move forward. In fact they should go multimedia and I think the present person will do it.

    “No I don’t believe that. That hullabaloo has also been in the system during my time. When I combined UTME with MPC and UME there were hullabaloos. Before we started CBT there were hullabaloos because of the fear of the unknown.

    “We are used to that in JAMB and we see challenges as progress. When we are challenged we face it. Nothing good comes easy,” he added.

  • JAMB sensitizes 500 students on CBT

    JAMB sensitizes 500 students on CBT

    The Joint Admission and Matriculation Board (JAMB) have sensitized over 500 secondary school students from 12 schools in Bwari Area Council, Abuja on the use of computer based test (CBT).

    The board said that the exercise would prepare the students ahead of the examination in few years.

    Most of the students, the board said, are in Senior Secondary one and two.

    JAMB’s Registrar, Prof. Dibu Ojerinde, who said this on Wednesday in Abuja in a pre-event to mark this year’s Children’s Day, told journalists that over 33 schools in the council were invited for the mock CBT advocacy.

    Represented by the Director, Test Administration, Dr. Yusuf Lawal, he explained that the board had conducted such advocacy in some state capital, adding that additional advocacy would be done across the 36 states.

    He said: “These are candidates who will be taking our exam in another one or two year. They are SSI and SSII students. And it is part of the sensitization and advocacy that JAMB is still carrying on. We will still do more of this in all the 36 states of the federation.

    “We have done this in all the state capitals but now we are going to the senatorial districts so we are testing the water with this. We have done this in Bwari, as a corporate responsibility where our headquarters is.

    “We are going to be taking on more kids on Friday with hands on the computer. So this is an opportunity for JAMB to identify with the children.

    “We decided right from 2013 that every opportunity that presented itself, we must continue to do this advocacy. As you know, some of our examination bodies who are doing public examination are still doing the paper based test as such it is alien to some of these kids.

    “We don’t want them to come to the examination hall on JAMB day and be seeing computer for the first time. It is actually a feedback from that we have got from our previous exams and we believe that we still need to cover a lot of ground in the area of advocacy. That is why we are doing this.”

    Prof. Ojerinde, added that the board would open the CBT centre in Kogo, Bwari, for students to practice how to take the test with computers.

    “You can come on Saturdays, during the holidays and this place will be open. We have trained our staff in the area of advocacy and sensitization and we will try as much as possible to do this reach out effectively so that everybody who will be taking this exam will have an idea before the exam day.

    “It’s not going to be free of charge because like we said it is not only JAMB centres that will be opened. Even the private investors will be encouraged. They are going to be brought here to tell them what it takes to do advocacy, to allow candidates have hands on computers,” he noted.

     

  • “JAMB used wrong software for 2016”

    “JAMB used wrong software for 2016”

    • Seeks Dibu Ojerinde’s resignation as registrar
    • JAMB explains conflicting results

    The Association of Tutorial School Operators (ATSO) has accused the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) of using the wrong grading software to mark the 2016/2017 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME).

    The group claimed that the error was responsible for the poor and conflicting results that were released by the board for the examination written between February 27 and March 17 in over 500 centres nationwide.

    At a press briefing in Lagos on Wednesday, President of the group, Mr Shodunke Oludotun, alleged that the board erroneously used the software from last year to grade this year’s examination.

    He called for the release of the right results, as well as the resignation of the JAMB Registrar, Prof ‘Dibu Ojerinde.

    Oludotun said: “We have our evidence to show that virtually all the candidates we have collected results of 2015/2016 and not of 2016/2017.

    “This year, Prof Dibu Ojerinde advertised 2016/2017 UTME – we all saw it.  During his press conference, he also mentioned 2016/2017.  During the exam, the students on their monitor, it displayed 2016/2017. Why is it that the result that was sent to the students showed 2015/2016?

    “From our findings from insiders in JAMB, we realized that the software of 2015/2016 interfered with the 2016/2017, which led to the massive failure of the students.  If you can see the trend of results from (February) 27 to 29, the students failed; (March) 7-15, the students failed massively.

    “But we noticed that the 27-29 were compensated with 40 marks still under the interference of software.  We can see that the 2015/2016 software was used to mark, that was why the students were receiving 2015/2016 results.  So where is 2016/2017 result?  That is what we are asking Prof Dibu Ojerinde…We are saying that Prof Dibu Ojerinde should step aside.”

    Though the House of Representatives has told JAMB to revert to the Paper Pencil Test (PPT) mode of the examination since the conduct of the Computer Based Test (CBT) was fraught with irregularities, Oludotun said the group was in support of the CBT because it is better.

    “This Association of Tutorial School Operators, we are not against CBT.  CBT has really helped to bring more students to tutorial centres.  It makes them to be serious; and we have taught them.  But for CBT, the whole JAMB exam would have been messed up.  Because before CBT, it will only take you N2,000 for Cyber café to send the answers to you.  So I want to say that we appreciate the professor for introducing the CBT; and we are in support of CBT,” he said.

    However, he called for Ojerinde to step aside so someone else would build on the foundation he has laid to conduct hitch free examinations.

    Responding to ATSO’s allegations of software mishap, Dr. Fabian Benjamin, JAMB’s Director of Media and Public Relations, said whether 2010 or 2019 software was used, what was important was the programming and not the marking guide.

    “I am not a programmer, but I can confirm to you that JAMB does not joke with its template. What happened with the 40 marks issue is because the scripts were marked based on 250 marks because only English Language is 100 while the other three papers carry 50 marks, making a total of 250.

    “So when the first results were released, they were calculated based on 250, and after normalization we felt it would not be ideal for us to cheat on the candidates. So we had to quickly send them their real scores,” Benjamin stated.

    He refuted claims that the House Committee on Education had ordered the board to revert to PPT.  Onl the contrary, he said the committee praised JAMB for introducing the CBT.

    “The House never considered ordering the examinationn to revert to PPT; individual members only raised suggestions,” he said.

  • JAMB bows to protesting candidates

    JAMB bows to protesting candidates

    The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) yesterday said that the board would reschedule examination for candidates who missed the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination because of relocation of centres by the board.

    The board said it relocated 59, 000 candidates in 15 states because of problems in some of the centres.

     It also said candidates who had system failure during the examination would retake it, if the board finds their complaint to be genuine.

     The Registrar of the board, Prof. Dibu Ojerinde, who said this at a press conference in Abuja yesterday, added that the new development does not affect candidates who missed the examination deliberately or failed in the examination.

     He said among the 1,546,633 candidates that sat for the 2016 UTME, 145, 704 had issues of multiple results which have been resolved by the board.

    Prof. Ojerinde added that 23, 577 candidates were absent on the day of the examination.

     “We relocated candidates where the board had challenges. The board is looking at some of the issues raised during the examination, but most of the excuses raised by candidates are flimsy,” he said.

    “We relocated about 59, 000 candidates due to the problems in various centres which vary from town to town. There are about 59,000 of them spread across 15 states of the federation.

     “Those that were relocated never suffered any setback or inconvenience. For all these two sets of people, I want to apologise sincerely for what happened to them, but we are going to put on a redress for those whose relocation affected them in missing their examination.

     “Let me use this opportunity to offer explanation on the issue of the much-publicized two results. The process of our marking involves transformation and other qualitative programming. In the process of these configurations, we had a little challenge which we quickly corrected and ensured that this never happened in subsequent results. This challenge was only associated with the candidates that sat for this examination on Saturday, 27, and some candidates of Monday, 29 February, 2016.”

     Prof. Ojerinde said the board found out that some of the over 500 centres used for the CBT was compromised by the operators.

     He said that one of its centres in Uromi, Edo State was invaded by mercenaries during the examination.

     He blamed the education consultants for mobilizing candidates to protest against the conduct of the examination by the board, adding that the quality of the centres used for UTME would not be compromised.

     “In our quest to have adequate and effective centres for the exercise, we approved over 500 centres, but unfortunately, some of the centre operators were not sincere in proving us with the true position of their facilities.

     “They hired equipment during the period of accreditation and other necessary apparatus and on the examination day, they were found wanting. This led to relocation or rescheduling of candidates from some of them to more suitable centres.

     He said Nigeria was ready to take the CBT examination, adding that reverting to the PPT as directed by the House of Representatives would amount to lack of progress.

     According to him, the CBT would be improved upon.

     “Even the physically challenged are taking the CBT examination. One of the blind candidates scored 286, so why should others complain?

     “Going back to the Paper and Pencil Test will amount to taking one step forward and two steps backwards,” he said.

  • JAMB succumbs to pressure

    JAMB succumbs to pressure

    •ASUU accuses board of compromise

    The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB), finally yielded to pressure by parents and candidates who are kicked against the Board’s directive to some candidates to write the post-Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME)  other than the universities of their first choices.

    The development followed wild jubilations in the streets of Akoka, Lagos by the Association of Tutorial School Operators who trooped to the streets.

    The new JAMB directive placed on some universities, including UNILAG, University of Ibadan, University of Ilorin and Imo State University, from conducting the post-UTME for any other candidates other than those recommended to them by the Board, has been provoking public outcry.

    JAMB PRO Mr. Fabian Benjamin, told The Nation that the Board decided to respect the the wishes by Nigerians as well as individual candidates, and would accord them the opportunity to fight for available slots.

    Benjamin said the redistribution of the candidates to other deprived universities would not stop, noting that affected candidates could as well write the post-UTME tests in their universities of first choice and still proceed to where they were redistributed to take part in their screening.

    He said: “JAMB as a responsible and responsive body wouldn’t have closed its ears against the cries of its candidates. But the redistribution still holds and the advantage is just that these candidates who have been redistributed have chances of writing post-UTME in two places.”

    Benjamin added that JAMB is only interested in ensuring that the candidates were offered admission, rather than wasting their high scores concentrating their efforts on an institution which might not work out eventually.

    Similarly, the National President of the Association of Tutorial School Operators, Mr. Oludotun Sodunke, who led the students to challenge the new policy in court, said the victory belonged to Nigerians and the responsiveness of a new government and the support by the media.

    Meanwhile, the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), has asked JAMB Registrar,  Prof Dibu Ojerinde to stop promoting a policy to favour private universities and exploit the poor.

    Chairman of ASUU University of Ibadan Chapter, Prof Segun Ajiboye, said JAMB’s relevance in Nigeria ends when universities started conducting their own post-UTME examinations.

    He stated the Senate of universities determines the type of students to admit within set of approved criteria open to all candidates.

    Ajiboye spoke on a television programme monitored in Ibadan on the recent policy of reallocation of candidates by JAMB.

    Ajiboye alleged that the JAMB boss  has been compromised by investors in private universities whom two percent of the applicants picked as preferred choice of institution.

    He said: “JAMB’s concept of ‘needy’ institutions needs deconstruction here. Needy universities are basically private universities in Nigeria who charge exorbitant fees with less than required manpower.

    In the 2015 UTME applications, 15,000 of the close to 1,436,837 million candidates sought admission into 48 private universities. Of these, Covenant, Babcock and Afe Babalola universities had 3, 144; 1,985 and 1, 247 applicants respectively.

    Others had below 600 applicants with some like Southwestern University, Well spring University and Kwararafa University having less than 10 candidates! If not doing the bidding of private universities, JAMB ought to be open with its policy from the point of sale of the forms. JAMB must tell us how many public universities are under-subscribed.”

  • JAMB announces dates for tests

    The Registrar of JAMB, Prof. Dibu Ojerinde, said on Thursday that the body’s paper-pencil test (PPT) and computer-based test (CBT) will hold on April 12 and May 17 respectively in 2,000 centres across the country.

    Ojerinde stated this in a chat with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Bwari, Federal Capital Territory (FCT).

    “We are ready for the examination even now; however we will give them time until April 12.

    “We are going to do the examination on April 12, for paper, pencil and dual-based test all over the country, but the CBT (Computer-Based Test), will start on May 17, and it will continue for 12 days.

    “In any case we are prepared; we have 300 centres for CBT while we have 2,000 centres for PPT (Paper-Pencil Test).

    “This is the last time we are going to do PPT; it will be all CBT next year. We want education to move forward, one of the ways of moving it forward is to eradicate examination malpractice.

    “That is our ambition and Nigeria will join the committee of nations in terms of technological development.”

    Ojerinde enjoined candidates to study hard to be able to pass as it will use the PPT.

    He, therefore, expressed the organisation’s resolve to eliminate examination malpractices.

    The registrar explained that the choice of the CBT was to curb examination malpractices, release results at the same time and encourage candidates to prepare adequately.

     

  • Reps summon JAMB boss over mass failure

    The Registrar of the Joint Admission and Matriculation Examination (JAMB), Prof. Dibu Ojerinde is to face the House of Representatives  over student’s mass failure in the last Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME).
    Chairman, House Committee on Education, Aminu Suleiman (PDP, Kano) said the invitation was as result of barrage of complaints that flooded the Committee from across the country.
    He said: “We heard that JAMB authorities had formally explained some reasons for the mass failure, this is not enough if the content of the complaints of Nigerians is anything to go by.
    “One of the complaints was that concerning the usage of computer for the exam that most of them have never had contact with computer before or that they only learnt the theory without the practical usage of computers.
    “It can be recalled that the House passed a resolution asking JAMB not to use computer for the 2013 exams and they said they would make nit optional; but there were still complaints by Nigerians that some students filled the manual or paper option only to find themselves being asked to write the exams using computers”.
    Saying that the mass failure could be as a result of the introduction of computers for the examinations, the Chairman noted that most students, especially those in the rural areas are not computer-literate enough .
    “The committee have no option that to act accordingly to work towards finding lasting solutions to the perennial failures of Nigerian students,” he said.

  • Mix reactions trail 2013 UMTE results

    Some people on Friday reacted to the release of result of the 2013 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) by the Joint Admissions and Matriculations Board (JAMB) on Friday.

    The Director, Quality Assurance, National Universities Commission (NUC), Prof. Chiedu Mafiana, described the percentage pass in the examination as slightly improving, going by the over 1.6 million candidates who sat for the examination.

    Mafiana spoke to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on telephone on Friday shortly after the release of the results.

    He attributed the large number of candidates found to have engaged in examination malpractices to the lack of preparedness among the students.

    ”I know I had said it before that the large number of candidates that usually enrol for this examination each year are not qualified because what JAMB comes up with during its examination is usually a different ball game from just going to school and copying notes.

    ”Having said this, it is only wise that we get our students well prepared and very qualified before attempting the examination in order to save the country from this malpractice mess.

    ”If we fail to plan for examinations of this nature, then the outcome is obviously what has been released by JAMB today.

    ”In the case of finding 12,110 candidates culpable to various examination malpractices, I feel JAMB had done a good job because compared to various examinations before now, it has reduced, which means JAMB has tightened its noose and I feel they have done a good job,” Mafiana said.

    On his part, Mr Femi Omokungbe, Chairman, Academic Staff Union of Polytechnic (ASUP), Yaba College of Technology chapter, insisted that candidates must have self examination before attempting public examinations as a way of preparing themselves mentally.

    Omokungbe said that majority of the candidates were not keen about going through the right path in achieving success, but would rather want to cut corners to reach the top.

    ”It is regrettable that we still have such huge number of candidates getting involved in examination malpractices despite all the consequences that surrounds it.

    ”This goes to show the kind of youths we are preparing to be our leaders of tomorrow and we pray that God in heaven should guide us aright and show us the way forward.

    ”If we have to compare the number of candidates that made scores of 300 marks and above when compared to the figure that sat for the examination, you will truly discover that we have a long way to go,” he said.

    The ASUP boss emphasised the need for government to be more proactive in enforcing disciplinary actions on candidates found culpable in public examinations to serve as deterrent to others.

    He said there would not be any transformation in the country if government failed to tackle the high rate of corruption which had permeated all strata of the society.

    Abdul-Gaffar Oyeweso, a professor of History in sun State University, said a lot needed to be done at the basic education level in order to correct the anomalies associated with conduct of examinations.

    NAN recalls JAMB Registrar, Prof. Dibu Ojerinde, at a news conference where he announced the release of the results, said 12,110 results  were withheld because the candidates were found culpable of various forms of examination malpractices.

    Ojerinde said that the results were withheld for possible disciplinary action.

    He added that the results of 68,309 candidates from various centres were currently undergoing further screening to ascertain the culpability of the 12,110 candidates’ results.

    Ojerinde said that 10 candidates scored 300 marks and above, while 127,017 candidates scored between one and 159 marks.

    He also said that about 40,692 candidates’ results were invalid due to either multiple shading or no shading at all, adding that after processing all the results, the board also discovered that about 47,974 candidates were absent.

    It would be recalled that a total of 1,629,102 candidates applied to write the Paper Pencil Test (PPT), while 15,008 candidates applied for the Dual Based Test, bringing the number of candidates to 1,644,110.

    Meanwhile the Computer Based Test (CBT) mode of the examination has been scheduled to take place from May 18 to June 1