The Registrar of the Joint Admission and Matriculation Board (JAMB), Prof Is-haq Oloyede, has identified a lack of uniform academic calendar, examination malpractice; admission outside the central admission processing system; unsuitable Computer Based Test centres and erratic power supply, as some of the challenges confronting the board.
He disclosed this on Wednesday while delivering a lecture on “The imperative of JAMB in Tertiary Education in Nigeria’, as part of the 13th Gbagura Day Celebration, held in Abeokuta, the Ogun State capital.
The JAMB boss noted that the Board in the last six years had made tremendous successes in its 43 years of existence.
Oloyede said, “A major challenge facing the Board is the issue of examination malpractice. It is a challenge because the Board provides a level playing field for all its candidates. However, perpetrators of examination malpractice do this to have an undue advantage over others. This poses a great challenge to the Board. The Board is tackling it on all fronts.
“Many culprits are in jail while a large number are being prosecuted by security agencies. The Independent Corrupt Practices and other related offences Commission (ICPC) has been a very worthwhile partner in the struggle against examination malpractice. I salute the leadership.
“Some candidates/institutions would not want to follow due process and prefer to short-change the system by carrying out their admissions outside CAPS. This renders them unqualified for NYSC mobilization.
“These candidates/institutions try to put pressure on the Board to condone such admissions. The Honourable Minister of Education, Malam Adamu Adamu, has taken some radical steps to prosecute perpetrators of this admission malpractice, even when such persons have ended their tainted tenures.”
He also submitted that the Board had remitted over N50 billion to the Federal Government in the last six years.
He said the N50bn surplus was recorded under his watch due to measures put in place on “cost control, prevention of financial leakages and minimisation of financial corruption.”
The chairman of the ceremony, Professor Rahmon Bello, said the lecture became imperative for the Gbagura community in its determination towards educational advancement.
Bello who was former Vice Chancellor of the University of Lagos urged students to use the knowledge acquired during the lecture to plan ahead as they seek admission into tertiary institutions.
