VAM News Update

THE Joint Admission and Matriculation Board (JAMB) has banned over 100 candidates from sitting for the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UMTE) for alleged forgery of result and examination malpractices in the 2023 examination.

The registrar of the Board, Prof. Ishaq Oloyede disclosed this on Wednesday at an investigative hearing with the House of Representatives ad hoc committee headed by Hon. Sada Soli APC, Katsina).

This is just as Miss Ejikeme Joy Mmesoma who altered her result from 249 to 362 has again openly apologised to the registrar of JAMB, Prof. Ishaq

Oloyede pleading that the board temper justice with mercy and reverse the 3 years ban imposed on her.

Testifying before the ad hoc committee, Prof. Oloyede informed that some of the candidates are being prosecuted and five of them standing trial at the High Court in Akure have been remanded.

He also disclosed that the centre where Mmesoma registered for the examination has been suspended for alleged complicity saying “The forgery was planned from the beginning but it failed.

“If you look at our requirements, the candidates has to write in her own handwriting but a different handwriting was used for Mmesoma at the centre”.

He said Mmesoma forged her JAMB result disclosing that the Board, however, discovered that she learnt the criminal act from an article published in “one of the most respected newspapers in the country titled ‘How to score high in JAMB’.

We also got to know that it is from the article that Mmesoma got the code where she forged her result”.

Oloyede said that after careful investigation by JAMB, it was proven and discovered that Mmesoma actually scored 249 and not 362 as being claimed by her.

He said that the examination number presented by Mnesoma was fake, and her sort code was fake adding that “She attempted to deceive our system but the system gave her actual results.

We believe that nothing fake can come from us. The name of the centre she paraded had changed since 2019.” Prof Oloyede stated.

He said that since the year 2020, the Board had put up mechanisms to curb identity theft noting that the board uses scores to rank candidates.

According to him, it was practically impossible for anyone to prove that fake results come from JAMB.

In her testimony, Mmesoma who came along with her father and lawyer admitted forging her result confirming that she had already admitted to forgery and tendered an unreserved apology to JAMB.

She said she got her result from a different portal, not the JAMB portal.
“This is the first time in my academic history that I am involved in any type of scandal. It is not in my character and I wholeheartedly plead for mercy” Miss Ejikeme said.

Earlier in his welcome address, chairman of the ad hoc committee, Hon Sada Soli said that the investigation was to get to the root of the matter and look for ways to prevent future occurrences.

He noted that the committee was set up to unravel the truth and that it would do.