The Nigeria Youth Forum (NYF), a civil advocacy organisation, has demanded the immediate removal of the Registrar of the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB), Prof. Ishaq Oloyede, following the board’s recent admission of technical errors that marred the 2025 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME).
In a statement on Thursday in Abuja by its National President, Comrade Toriah Olajide Filani, the group described the situation as “administrative recklessness of tragic proportions.”
It stressed that the continued leadership of Prof. Oloyede constitutes an insult to the intelligence and pain of over two million Nigerian students whose academic futures have been jeopardised.
Fresh data released in the aftermath of the controversy shows that 379,997 candidates were affected by computer glitches out of a total of 1.95 million who registered for the exam. This translates to an error rate of 19.5%, a figure that the NYF has described as “far beyond any acceptable threshold” in any credible examination system.
“In light of this,” Filani stated, “the most appropriate course of action would be an outright cancellation of the compromised examination sessions to preserve the integrity of the entire process.”
Comrade Filani decried the persistent challenges facing JAMB, stating that it is unacceptable for students in this modern era to travel across states to sit for a single examination, only to later be informed that their results were either inaccurate or outrightly cancelled.
He questioned the state of the country’s examination framework, describing it as a national embarrassment that has outlived its usefulness in its current form.
During a recent press briefing, Prof. Oloyede broke down in tears while acknowledging the errors and taking responsibility for the flawed scoring system. However, NYF insisted that emotions cannot substitute for accountability.
“A young girl, Timilehin Faith Opesusi, has already taken her own life in Lagos due to a UTME score that may have been wrongly assigned. What greater tragedy must we witness before those responsible are held accountable?” Filani asked.
The tragic death of 19-year-old Timilehin, who reportedly died by suicide after receiving a disappointing UTME result, has provoked widespread outrage and lent moral weight to NYF’s demand for urgent action.
The forum also revisited the 2023 case involving Mmesoma Ejikeme, a candidate accused of falsifying her score after she claimed to have obtained 362 in the UTME. JAMB dismissed her claim as fraud, and she later publicly admitted altering her result under pressure. However, in light of the board’s recent admission of systemic errors, many Nigerians are now questioning the validity of that earlier judgment.
“Mmesoma may have been a casualty of a compromised system. JAMB owes her, and many others, a national apology,” Filani said.
Public opinion has continued to mount against the examination body. Social media platforms have seen an outpouring of frustration from citizens who now question the integrity of JAMB. One online user, @AdekunleOderind, noted, “We have many problems with our education system, but when the integrity of the exam body is in doubt, the entire foundation of national merit collapses.”
The NYF also accused JAMB of drifting from its original mandate of ensuring credible entrance examinations. According to the group, the board has transformed into a revenue-generating agency that prioritises remitting billions of naira to the federal treasury over delivering accurate assessments.
“JAMB was never designed to be a cash cow,” Filani said. “But each year, it takes pride in announcing how much it returns to the government. Meanwhile, students travel long distances only to be failed by faulty systems or administrative lapses.”
The forum is advocating for a comprehensive overhaul of the nation’s examination framework. It has proposed the adoption of a Proctored Examination Model—an advanced, digitally secure testing system that enables candidates to take exams from home or designated local centres, with real-time monitoring, facial recognition, and artificial intelligence-based oversight to safeguard exam integrity.
“This is not a futuristic concept. It is a global standard that Nigeria must embrace,” Filani said. “We have the technology. What is lacking is the vision and the political will.”
Comrade Filani urged President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and the Honourable Minister of Education to act decisively, warning that the aspirations of Nigerian youths must not be sacrificed on the altar of elite complacency.
He concluded that while Prof. Oloyede’s open admission of fault reflects a degree of personal integrity, it is not sufficient in itself. “For accountability to be meaningful,” he asserted, “he should take the honourable step of vacating the position and allow a more capable hand to restore public confidence in JAMB.”
