The House of Representatives on Wednesday directed the Joint Admission And Matriculation Board (JAMB) to desist from any further action on the issue of the alleged manipulation of the Unified Tartary Matriculation Examination (UTME) result by a candidate, Miss Ejikeme Mmesoma.
This followed the adoption of a motion on a call to investigate the alleged manipulation of the UTME by JAMB by Miss Ejikeme Mmesoma sponsored by Hon. Awaji-Inombek D. Abiante.
The House also called on JAMB to lift the sanction of barring the candidate from participating in the examination for three years. and called for independent examiners to examine the girl’s script to determine her score.
It also resolved to set up an ad-hoc committee to investigate the alleged manipulation and report back in three weeks.
The House also resolved to probe JAMB facilities with a view to averting such a situation in the future.
The House expanded the scope of the committee to probe the issue of special centres for examinations in the country.
The House said it was aware that Miss Ejikeme Mmesoma of Anglican Girls Secondary School, Nnewi, Anambra State sat for the 2023 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examinations and scored 362.
The House also said it was aware that on 2 July 2023 JAMB, Head of Public Affairs and Protocol, Dr. Fabian Benjamin made a public pronouncement accusing Miss Ejikeme Mmesoma of manipulating her UTME results that she actually scored 249 instead of 362 as claimed.
It said it was further aware that Miss. Ejikeme Mmesoma came out to defend herself, that she actually printed the result from JAMB.
The House noted the girl had been a brilliant child all through her nursery and tertiary education, coming first in all the examinations she has taken before the UTME, hence she posited that she is not capable of manipulating her UTME result.
It expressed worry that JAMB Head of Public Affairs and Protocol, Dr Fabian Benjamin, alleged that some of the 2023 UTME candidates are parading fake scores in order to get an undue advantage from the public, hence the need to investigate the allegation.
The House noted that (JAMB is primarily charged with the general control of the conduct of matriculation examinations for admissions into Universities, Polytechnics, and Colleges of Education in Nigeria.
It also noted that graduating Secondary School leavers and others with prerequisite WAEC, NECO and other qualifying results apply to sit for the UTME through JAMB every year to gain admission into Universities, Polytechnics and Colleges of Education.
The House further noted that students who sat for the UTME are expected to log into the JAMB portal to check their results once released by JAMB.
