Ohanaeze Rejects JAMB’s Plan for Fresh UTME In Southeast

Thursday May 15, 2025 |

The youth wing of the apex Igbo socio-cultural organisation, Ohanaeze Ndigbo Youth Council Worldwide, has strongly opposed the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board’s (JAMB) decision to reschedule examinations for candidates in the South-East and Lagos affected by recently acknowledged result errors.

JAMB Registrar, Prof. Ishaq Oloyede, had on Wednesday admitted to technical errors that led to unusually low scores among candidates from the five South-East states and Lagos. In response, the board proposed a fresh round of examinations for the affected students.

However, in a statement on Thursday, May 15, the National President of the Ohanaeze Youth Council, Okwu Nnabuike, described the proposal as “totally unacceptable,” accusing JAMB of compounding the emotional trauma already suffered by the candidates.

“Our people will not accept any fresh examination,” Okwu declared. “These candidates are still reeling from the psychological distress caused by the flawed results. Subjecting them to another round of testing is cruel, unnecessary, and unjustified.”

He questioned the feasibility of the re-examination, citing the financial burden on already struggling parents and the security risks involved in travel, especially in volatile parts of the country.

In a bold demand, Okwu called on JAMB to award a score of 300 to all affected candidates from the South-East, asserting that the region’s students are academically capable of achieving such results.

“It is an open secret that Igbos are brilliant and industrious. The error wasn’t theirs, so why should they bear the consequences?” he said.

Okwu further alleged that the situation appeared to be a “deliberate design to punish the people of the South-East” and suppress their educational advancement.

He warned that failure to comply with their demands would result in legal action against JAMB.

“No amount of crocodile tears by the Registrar will save the Board. We are ready to take this matter to court,” the statement concluded.

This development adds a fresh layer of controversy to the ongoing fallout from JAMB’s admission of technical failures in the 2024 UTME, especially as public confidence in the examination body’s credibility remains strained.