From Victor Osula, Abuja
The House of Representatives Committee on Basic Education and Examination Bodies has attributed the poor performance recorded in the 2025 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) to human error, dismissing earlier claims of technical glitches.
The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) admitted last Wednesday that technical issues affected the credibility of results in several centres.
JAMB later disclosed that over 379,997 candidates across Lagos and the five South-East states were affected by the issues. A rescheduled examination was held between Friday and Monday for the affected candidates.
Following a resolution passed last Thursday, the House mandated its Committees on Basic Education, ICT, and other relevant bodies to collaborate with JAMB in addressing challenges plaguing the examination process.
Addressing journalists on Tuesday in Abuja, Chairman of the House Committee on Basic Education, Oboku Oforji, said preliminary findings showed that human error, not system failure, was to blame for the anomalies.
“These human errors were completely avoidable and stemmed from negligence on the part of JAMB,” Oforji said.
He expressed sympathy for candidates affected by the irregularities and called for an independent and thorough investigation into the matter. He noted that the committee had been advocating reforms to raise the standards of examination oversight across all six geopolitical zones.
“We are all aware of the unfortunate situation our children faced during the 2025 UTME—a situation unprecedented in JAMB’s history,” Oforji said.
“The committee expresses deep sympathy to the affected candidates. On behalf of the House and JAMB, we apologise to all Nigerians. We also commend the courage and sincerity of the JAMB Registrar, Professor Ishaq Oloyede, for owning up to the faults and apologising to candidates, parents, and the nation at large.”
He added: “We in the National Assembly share the concerns of parents and students, and we join in calling for an independent and thorough investigation into the incident.”
Oforji stressed the urgency of accountability in Nigeria’s educational system, warning that the sector could not afford another scandal.
Meanwhile, JAMB has announced that the results of the rescheduled UTME will be released on Wednesday, May 21.
Speaking with journalists on Monday, JAMB spokesperson, Dr. Fabian Benjamin, confirmed the timeline, saying, “The results of the candidates who took the rescheduled exam will be released on Wednesday.”
