The South-East Caucus in the House of Representatives has called for the resignation of the Registrar of the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB), Prof. Ishaq Oloyede, over what it described as a “catastrophic institutional failure” in the conduct of the 2025 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME).
The Caucus criticised JAMB for the technical glitches that affected nearly 380,000 candidates, many of whom are now required to resit the examination, lamenting the significantly impact of the situation on all the five states in South-East zone.
The caucus, led by Hon. Igariwey Iduma Enwo (APC, Ebonyi), said the Board’s response had been grossly inadequate, citing poor communication, scheduling conflicts with ongoing WAEC examinations, and the short notice given for the resit. They argued that the situation has caused unnecessary trauma for students and families.
“Last week, particularly on May 14, 2025, the Registrar of JAMB, Professor Ishaq Oloyede, made a shocking public admission that due to a ‘technical glitch’ at some examination centres during the 2025 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME), approximately 379,997 out of 1.9 million candidates would be required to resit the exam.
“As a caucus, we are deeply concerned, as all five South Eastern states we represent were directly affected by these so-called ‘score distortions. Over the past week, we have exercised restraint, hoping that JAMB would provide effective remedial measures to address what is clearly a catastrophic institutional failure—one that has severely shaken public trust and the confidence of students and their families nationwide,” it stated.
The caucus also called for the immediate cancellation of the entire 2025 UTME and the fixing of a new date, preferably after the Senior Secondary School Examinations (SSSE) undertaken by WAEC and NECO, to ensure no student is disadvantaged and demanded the suspension of key officials responsible for JAMB’s digital operations and logistics
They acknowledged Oloyede’s public admission of the failure but maintained that accountability must go beyond apologies, saying his resignation would allow for a thorough, independent review of the failure and restore public confidence in the examination body.
The lawmakers reminded JAMB of its constitutional duty to guarantee equal and adequate educational opportunities for all Nigerian children, a responsibility they said had clearly been violated in this instance.
“While we acknowledge Professor Oloyede’s openness in admitting JAMB’s failures, we must state unequivocally that the remedial steps taken so far fall drastically short of our constituents’ expectations.
“JAMB’s knee-jerk, fire-brigade approach has been anything but adequate. Students in the South East—many of whom are currently writing their WAEC examinations—were given less than 48 hours’ notice to appear for the rescheduled UTME. Reports indicate that this notice was grossly inadequate, resulting in low turnout.
“In some cases, the rescheduled UTME clashed directly with ongoing WAEC papers, compounding the distress and confusion for students and their families. We must remind Nigerians that JAMB, as a government agency, is duty-bound to uphold the fundamental obligations of government to its citizens.
“The framers of our Constitution recognised the central role of education in national development. Section 18(1) of the 1999 Constitution clearly states: ‘Government shall direct its policy towards ensuring that there are equal and adequate educational opportunities at all levels.’
“By recent judicial pronouncements, this provision now constitutes an enforceable right for every Nigerian child. Sadly, for the thousands of students across the South East, the flawed and tainted conduct of the 2025 UTME has effectively denied them that right to equal and adequate educational opportunities,” the South-East lawmakers added.
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