The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) has addressed concerns raised by former Labour Party presidential candidate, Peter Obi, regarding the early arrival time mandated for candidates sitting for the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME).
Obi, in a post shared on X on Sunday, criticised reports that teenagers were being required to travel to examination centres as early as 6:30 a.m., despite prevailing security risks.
He described the arrangement as “reckless,” pointing to incidents involving accidents and missing candidates, which he attributed to Nigeria’s underfunded education sector.
“Setting exams for vulnerable teenagers as early as 6:00 AM while transporting them across far-flung locations is reckless,” Obi wrote.
“Already, reports are emerging of students getting into accidents and losing their young lives, some going missing, and many more being subjected to unnecessary trauma. Who takes responsibility when a 15- or 16-year-old child disappears or is harmed while trying to access their right to education?”
He argued that the practice not only endangered young lives but also reflected the deeper systemic issues plaguing Nigeria’s educational system.
ALSO READ
Responding later on Sunday, JAMB clarified that examinations were officially slated to begin at 8:00 a.m., not 6:00 a.m., as speculated. However, the board explained that candidates were required to arrive by 6:30 a.m. for verification and clearance procedures.
In a post via its official X handle, JAMB stated, “Your Excellency, I must assert that our examination is scheduled to commence at 8:00am, not 6:00 am. While verification and other clearance processes begins at 6:30am, it is imperative that candidates are afforded adequate time to settle in before the exam begins.”
The board further emphasized that the structured early timeline was designed to address the common tendency for lateness, ensuring that all candidates were fully settled and prepared to perform optimally.
“Given the tendencies often observed among Nigerians to arrive late when a start time is set without space for eventuality, this structured timeline is essential to ensure that all candidates are properly prepared and can perform to the best of their abilities,” the statement added.
