By Seun Omole, Abuja
The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board, (JAMB) has announced plans to dismiss three (3) staff members for selling unauthorised access to its examination portal, as it intensified a nationwide crackdown on examination fraud ahead of the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME).
Speaking to the press at the board’s headquarters, in Abuja, JAMB Registrar, Prof. Ishaq Oloyede, confirmed that two additional staff in Kaduna and Katsina states remained under active investigation, while sanctions loomed for candidates and parents implicated in the scheme.
Oloyede said the board investigations uncovered organised syndicates, some using artificial intelligence to impersonate officials and defraud candidates.
“This briefing addresses a grave development that strikes at the heart of fairness, merit and integrity,” the registrar said. “We have invested heavily to protect honest candidates, but criminal networks and willing collaborators continue to test the system.”
He revealed that more than 100 candidates allegedly paid for illegal assistance, adding that their UTME registrations may be cancelled, subject to approval by the Minister of Education.
Oloyede stressed that parents and candidates involved “cannot be regarded as innocent”.
The Board also raised concern over underage participation, disclosing that about 38,000 candidates registered this year were below the approved age, warning that many are increasingly linked to malpractice rings.
“We have the capacity to clamp down on exam malpractice,” the registrar said. “Our only challenge is public opinion. When we act, some label us draconian.”
The board rejected claims of increased registration fees and said that several CBT centres and tutorial proprietors linked to fraud had been suspended or taken into custody. Security agencies, including the DSS and Police, are supporting ongoing investigations.
“Paying for examination fraud is a crime, it does not secure a child’s future, it destroys it”, the registrar warned.
