Unending Uproar Over JAMB’s CB Tests

Scores of Joint Admissions Matriculation Board (JAMB) candidates and members of Association of Tutorial School Owners of Nigeria, have protested in Lagos and Ilorin over allegations of shoddy conduct of the recent JAMB examinations which led to the failure of some candidates for no fault of theirs.

“Dibu must go. Dibu must never return to JAMB again. Dibu give me my result. I don’t want extra 40 marks, Dibu, give me my real result. Dibu, you cannot toy with our future, release my results. You are too old to lead the Board at 71.’’ Those were some of the words written on placards which hundreds of JAMB candidates carried on Tuesday at the State House of Assembly, Alausa, Lagos State.

The frustrated JAMB candidates had gathered in a peaceful protest at Maryland around 8am and marched to the House of Assembly, chanting, ‘’Dibu must go.’’ The protesters said their choice of the House of Assembly as focal point, is to enable the law makers convey their plight to the federal government.

At the protest which was monitored by Vanguard, candidates alleged that the JAMB registrar, Professor Dibu Ojerinde, had added and deducted scores of candidates at his discretion.

According to them, some candidates who sat for the examination on April 27 and 29 when JAMB was test running the system, had low scores which was later upgraded by adding 40 marks.

They said that despite of the 40 marks, their scores were below 200. Some others complaints that the results they earlier received were withdrawn and replaced with another. While some others have not received their results till date.

One of the protesters added; “He added 40 marks in the first week and deducted 100 marks in the following.” They also alleged that there were cases where some students received scores before writing the examination.

Discrepancies: Reacting during the protest, Kalejaiye Joshua, one of the protesters disclosed that while he was writing the exams, the server went off about three times. He said: “When the result came out my English was 37, Mathematics, which I am not good at, I got 47. My total score was 220, but when I went to print it out, I saw 164, what happened? It is unfair and not good. I spent eight hours travelling to Igbajo Polythenic, in Osun state from Ketu, Lagos.’’

Bankole Oluwapelumi, who did his exams last Tuesday, is yet to get his results which were supposed to be made available 24 hours after the exam.”JAMB initially sent me 170 through text message, but when I went to the cyber cafe to check the the result, it indicated no result. Even the day I went to my centre at Noble Star, Aga, Ikorodu, we were told that the centre has been changed to Ojokoro, Agric without prior notice.”

Temitayo Akindele, on her part said: “I read very well for this exam. I am an Arts student, and when it comes to English and Government, I am very good but Maths am not good. However, my result in Maths was the highest, am sure the computer deducted 100 marks from me. That is what I think.

“Last year, I scored 239, and I didn’t prepare for it. But this year, sleepless night and long hours of reading, I got 194. I’m not dull or daft. I don’t want their 40 marks. I want my real result.’’

Olamide, who wrote her examination on February 27 in Osun State, said: “The score that was sent to my phone on Sunday morning after my examination on Saturday was 159, but when I went to check it on Tuesday, it became 199. ‘’The mark is not mine, because I wrote better than that score. UNILAG is my first choice and cannot accept less than 200.”

Okoro Cherish Chisom said: “Though, I registered in Lagos, I was sent to OAU, Osun state to write the exam without complain. I spent a lot of money for transport, lodging and feeding.While writing the exam, my system went off four times. As a prospecting law student of UNILAG, I knew what I wrote. I checked my score on line and I saw 219, for what? When I wrote jamb last year, I scored 237, and this year 219. I know my worth and what am capable of doing.”

On his part, National Public Relations Officer, of Association of National Tutorial School Operators in Nigeria, Prince Adewale Idowu, described the whole Jamb exam as a sham, adding that it is nothing to write home about.

”JAMB cannot be testing system at the expense of future of the students. JAMB told us it would start exams on February 29 and test the systems on February 27. You are testing the system with student’s future?

“As a result, candidates had to write the exams while testing was going on. Later, after the Examinations and poor results released, JAMB added 40 marks. On what parameter or context did they do that? Professor Ojerinde should be removed, he is too old at 71 to lead the Board.”

Different scores: Also, a member of Tutorial School Owners Association of Nigeria based in Ilorin and spokesman for the protesters, Mr Olawuyi Olufemi, told journalists in an interview that to their dismay, complaints from the affected candidates and their parents indicates that they received different scores in text messages and printout, which reduced in most cases, their scores by at least 40marks.

Olufemi also gave graphic details of how computer malfunctions and poor loading of questions and instructions cheated many candidates of their hard earned success as the questions were not properly loaded,so they could not be answered on time and therefore caused them to fail woefully.

He also said that though their jobs end at training candidates for successful performance in JAMB examinations, they had to join the protest to bring the matter to the attention of the government, more importantly, when they are being asked by the parents to refund money they paid for training the candidates.

Appeal to FG: In view of this development, the protesters urged the Federal Government to wade in and compel JAMB to give affected candidates their real scores to enable them gain admission.

Meanwhile, having gotten first hand information of the candidates’ protest, the Head of Media, JAMB, Dr. Fabian Benjamin, on Monday night in a release said: “The protests are being sponsored by some proprietors whose examination centres were lacking in all the indices needed for a successful Computer Based Test (CBT) examination.’’

Benjamin, who described the protest as sponsored, said the worst CBT is far better than the best paper and pencil test.

His words: “The attention of the Board has been drawn to a planned protest tomorrow, (Tuesday) in Lagos over the Board’s activities by individuals who call themselves education consultants. JAMB has called for calm and advised candidates to always avail themselves the opportunity provided by the board through its public complaints unit to vent their grievances and not to allow blackmailers use them for selfish interest.

“The Board had approved centres provided by these individuals to be used for the 2016 exercise, but unfortunately couldn’t as the centres were found to be lacking in all the indices needed for a successful CBT examination. This was discussed with these proprietors and they showed understanding as they witnessed the difficulties the Board went through to run even a session in their centres.”