The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) has come under intense fire following widespread complaints over alleged technical glitches, incomplete questions, and shockingly low scores in the recently concluded 2025 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME).
What started as murmurs of dissatisfaction from candidates has now snowballed into a national controversy, with over 1.5 million candidates petitioning JAMB for an immediate review of the examination. Many have threatened to take legal action if their demands are not met.
JAMB, in response, has ordered a fast-tracked review of the entire examination process.
In a statement issued on Monday by its Public Communication Advisor, Dr Fabian Benjamin, the Board acknowledged what it described as an “unusual” volume of complaints since the UTME results were released last Friday.
“We are particularly concerned about the unusual complaints originating from a few states within the federation. We are currently scrutinising these complaints in detail to identify and rectify any potential technical issues,” the statement read.
The Board explained that its yearly post-examination review—usually conducted months after the UTME—has now been fast-tracked due to the deluge of complaints.
“To assist in this process, we have engaged several experts, including members from the Computer Professionals Association of Nigeria, Chief External Examiners, who are heads of tertiary institutions, the Educational Assessment and Research Network in Africa, measurement experts, and Vice Chancellors from various institutions,” Dr Benjamin said.
“If it is determined that there were indeed glitches, we will implement appropriate remedial measures promptly, as we do in the case of the examinations themselves,” he added.
Meanwhile, the affected candidates are not backing down.
In a petition dated 12th May and addressed to the examination body, over 1,534,000 candidates, through their counsel, John Nwobodo, have formally demanded that JAMB make public the questions and corresponding answers for each candidate. They cited the Freedom of Information Act as their legal backing.
Nwobodo, in a statement, said: “The statistics reveal the worst failure rate ever in the history of the JAMB-conducted examination, thereby raising public concern and outcry as to the reason behind the baffling and startling poor performance.”
According to him, the petitioners include 2,031 candidates who scored below 100; 3,820 who scored between 100–119; 57,419 between 120–139; 488,197 between 140–159; and 983,187 who scored between 160–199.
“Our clients highly dispute the results as not reflective of their effort, presupposing that there might have been a possible glitch in the JAMB software, potentially resulting in the mismatch between the questions and the answers,” Nwobodo stated.
He argued that the current system only allows candidates to see their scores in each subject without access to the actual questions and answers.
“The above scenario has cast a shadow of doubt over the integrity of the software deployed by the Board in administering and marking the questions,” he said.
“The transparency and accountability required of the Board entail a reconfiguration of the system to not only display the aggregate score of the candidates but also the questions and the corresponding answers.”
Nwobodo warned that the legal team would explore every legal avenue to seek justice for the aggrieved candidates if JAMB fails to comply.
Also speaking out, education advocate and Chief Executive Officer of Educare, Alex Onyia, confirmed that a class action is already in motion. Onyia disclosed that over 8,000 candidates had sent formal complaints regarding technical issues.
“Currently, we have 8,391 students who have sent in their complaints regarding the glitches in the JAMB 2025 exam,” Onyia posted on his X page. “These are lots of evidence to prove that JAMB’s system was inefficient and thereby causing serious harm to these students’ mental health.”
The controversy has stirred widespread public concern, with many parents and education stakeholders calling on the federal government to intervene and ensure that the credibility of Nigeria’s tertiary admission process is upheld.
As the calls for transparency grow louder, all eyes are now on JAMB’s review panel and the outcome of the post-examination audit.
JAMB has set the date for the review for Thursday, 15 April.
- Tinubu’s Presidency Immortalised in Abuja With Barracks, Schools, Roads - June 12, 2025
- June 12: Tinubu Dismisses One-Party State Claims - June 12, 2025
- Tinubu: When Wike Joins APC, We’ll Be Singing ‘As E Dey Pain Them’ - June 11, 2025