Claims Of Admissions Denials In Tertiary Institutions False, Baseless -JAMB
By Alice Etuka Abuja
The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) has described as false and baseless the allegations by some parents that their children are denied admission despite scoring high in the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME).
This clarification was contained in a statement issued by JAMB’s Spokesperson, Fabian Benjamin on Sunday.
Benjamin disclosed that a recent case involved a parent, Mr Godwin Nsan who publicly accused the University of Calabar of unjustly denying his child what he deemed a “rightful admission.”
He had protested in writing to JAMB but was unwilling to provide requested details to establish his case despite pleas from the Board. When he eventually provided the details after he had unduly castigated the University in the media, it was discovered that the score (ranking) of the child who scored 201 in the UTME and whose aggregate score was 34% fell below the 55%; 35% and 35 which were for Merit; Catchment and ELDS respectively whereas he had unduly castigated the University.
To help mitigate such misunderstandings, the Spokesperson informed that JAMB had implemented a robust communication system — the Ticketing Platform — where candidates and their guardians can seek clarification before airing grievances publicly.
He stated that, “as a regulatory body, JAMB is committed to ensuring that qualified candidates are not substituted for inferior candidates, which is why we established the Central Admissions Processing System (CAPS) to transparently rank candidates for admission selection”.
He continued; “similarly, a senior public figure alleged that Modibbo Adama University, Yola, sidelined some candidates in its admission exercise. JAMB promptly investigated and found the claims to be unfounded. We communicated our findings to the individual, clarifying why his assertions of discrimination were inaccurate.
“To promote accountability among institutions and ensure adherence to admission guidelines, JAMB shared its findings with the relevant universities. The Board will continue to share such with institutions, where necessary, even as the Board, however, cautions institutions against disclosing such confidential information meant solely for institutional use to the public or media.
“While the Board welcomes genuine complaints, it detests public condemnation of tertiary institutions, who are merely doing their duties”.
In light of these circumstances, the Board advised parents to refrain from being swayed by their subjective perceptions of their children’s exceptional abilities without considering the broader context of overall candidate performance.
This perspective, they noted can help mitigate feelings of desperation and disappointment.
“JAMB remains committed to protecting the rights of all candidates by ensuring fair and equitable selection through transparent ranking based on performance. We will investigate any allegations of unfair treatment and provide necessary clarifications.
“Currently, a senior university staff is being prosecuted for admission-related crimes, with four others under investigation. JAMB does not tolerate any admission infractions and will take appropriate action against any individuals involved in questionable practices regarding admissions.
“We urge parents to refrain from jumping to conclusions without considering the performance of other candidates. The UTME serves as a ranking examination by determining a candidate’s position within a cohort for the limited available spaces in our nation’s tertiary institutions”, JAMB said.
