Rethinking JAMB: Why Duty of Care Must Be a Priority — A Perspective by Mide Alabi

I am among the many who have called for the elimination of JAMB. Nonetheless, despite their flaws, many Nigerian institutions offer jobs. Reform—a comprehensive makeover of JAMB and other institutions, informed by suggestions from impartial local and foreign experts—is a more achievable objective. I hope people in power recognize the need in light of this national shame. However, given the typical course of events, I wouldn’t be shocked if it were quietly ignored.

Dear Mr. Onyia,

We want to express our sincere gratitude on behalf of our fellow students for your tireless efforts on behalf of students across the nation.

We have been keeping an eye on everything, and we sincerely appreciate all that you have done. Knowing that someone is standing up for us means a lot.

We’re also pleased to report that every student who retook the test achieved outstanding scores, which is a clear indication of how effective your campaigning was.

We sincerely appreciate it and pray that God would continue to strengthen, bless, and guide you in whatever you do.

Sincerely,
Head Girl of The Lagoon School, Kamsi Nsolibe

Mr. Alex Onyia, CEO of Educare and a major player in the tale I’m going to tell, received this message following the latest JAMB retake exam. The letter is well-considered and presents Kamsi and her school in a positive light. Her kind comments struck a chord with me and warmed my heart, so I chose to start this piece with them.

I wish I could claim that all of the subsequent events are purely imaginary and that this account is a work of fiction. However, this is Nigeria, where facts frequently surpass imagination.

Mr. Onyia saw an issue. Many candidates’ academic records and talents did not align with the exam results that were made public.

This affected thousands of students who took the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME), especially in Lagos and the South-East. It was very unusual.

In normal circumstances, this might not be a major problem. Nerves, technical issues, or a lack of preparation for the test can all cause students to perform poorly. Those are reasonable justifications.

However, in this instance, none of those explanations applied to the majority of impacted pupils.

The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) published an analysis before the results’ release: Of the 1,955,069 applications, only 420,415 (200 out of 400) received a score higher than 50%. More than 1.5 million applicants received scores below 50%. A failure rate of 75% by that metric.

Think pieces were instantly sparked by this. While some argued that the results could not be real, the majority expressed concern about the deterioration of Nigerian education.

Nigeria’s education minister, Dr. Tunji Alausa, endorsed JAMB’s position. He claimed that the subpar outcomes were a reflection of the government’s successful anti-malpractice efforts to end cheating. That statement struck me as strange, especially coming from someone the president trusted and who was in charge of the education sector. However, given that his predecessor, Tahir Mamman, made a series of dubious choices before being ousted, I must confess that I had little optimism.

Instead of focusing on the test procedure itself, the blame swiftly transferred to distractions like social media, phones, video games, and TikTok as Mr. Alausa fueled the narrative.

On social media, hysteria and false information proliferated as usual. There were rumors that JAMB purposefully lowered scores and that hackers had broken into the system. The misunderstanding has only increased since JAMB did not provide an official explanation.

Students’ misgivings grew as they looked at their results and noticed poor marks. Social media was inundated with complaints from relatives who claimed that these results did not reflect their wards’ prior performances. Some of them provided evidence in the form of previous school results.

I was given the responsibility of verifying the results of a younger buddy who had received a score of 245 on an earlier exam and wanted to improve. He had a score of 166 when I checked.

I was angry because I thought JAMB’s result denigrated our brains, not because I thought he scored so low. The score made no sense, yet he had worked twice as hard.

I came across a lot of similar stories when I was scrolling through Twitter. Last year’s top performers received far lower scores this time. On such a scale, the abrupt failure of so many bright kids was statistically unlikely.

I came across a tweet from Mr. Alex Onyia while surfing that included a link to a complaint form for impacted pupils. He continued to update the number of signatures, including mine, until it quickly reached the thousands.

Mr. Onyia utilized his position to reach his 40,000 followers and beyond, amplifying the voices of impacted kids and guardians. He placed enough pressure to compel a review of the test and urged JAMB for answers.

The results of JAMB’s review were made public on May 14. The board acknowledged that the inaccurate results were the consequence of a “technical glitch” brought on by a botched patch on the exam servers. They decided to administer a new test to the South-East and Lagos, the impacted areas.

This was a much-needed solution to an issue that never should have arisen.

That same Friday was the start date of the postponed exams. Although other stakeholders seemed to agree that it was best to move on, I initially felt that this was too soon.

I looked at my friend’s results once more yesterday. On this occasion, it made me smile — 285.

It was finished. We were victorious. After months of diligent labor, he had finally earned the grade he so richly deserved. I’m still proud of him, and I hope he gets accepted into the school and the course of his choice.

This predicament is a depressing illustration of how inadequate many Nigerian systems are, particularly in the area of education. On the path to reaching their full potential, our schools and students continue to face several obstacles.

The culture of negligence and lack of accountability from institutions and important education stakeholders, more than the incident itself, was what most disturbed me. It was obvious that those in control had little regard or regard for our schools, kids, or guardians, as seen by Mr. Alausa’s hasty apology, which blamed the exam failure on anti-cheating success, and JAMB’s social media team’s post, “Man Proposes, God Disposes,” which also admitted culpability.

The thought of what may have occurred if we had kept quiet makes me tremble. Despite their hard work and perseverance, more than 75% of applicants nationwide (or roughly 19.4%, if you follow JAMB’s admission) would have been unjustly passed over. This emphasizes how vital it is for institutions to be effective, starting with their leaders.

I am among the many who have called for the elimination of JAMB. Nonetheless, despite their flaws, many Nigerian institutions offer jobs. Reform—a comprehensive makeover of JAMB and other institutions, informed by suggestions from impartial local and foreign experts—is a more achievable objective. I hope people in power recognize the need in light of this national shame. However, given the typical course of events, I wouldn’t be shocked if it were quietly ignored.

This leads me to my second idea, which is the strength of solidarity and group voice. I’ve always supported the idea of people banding together to fight oppression. Nigerians banding together to demand a review pleased me.

Despite attempts by others to utilize ethnic tensions to sabotage the campaign, the leaders remained committed, and the objective was accomplished.

The system fights back when you fight it. It attempts to consume as much as it can and destroys everything that stands in its way. I frequently ponder when it will be sufficient.

I envision a time when we will all work together to challenge repressive structures and organizations that profit from the pain of millions.

Lastly, I want to emphasize the strength of resolute, compassionate people who are prepared to go above and beyond for causes they support. It is admirable to pursue an ideal when you might live happily without the struggle. It calls for genuine generosity and selfless hope.

It is encouraging to see such examples in a nation where trust is low and people do not go out of their way for others.

I thus applaud everyone who helped to promote the test review, particularly Mr. Alex Onyia, Kamsi Nnamchi, who initiated a petition on Change.org that was signed by a large number of people, Evans Ufeli Esq., who offered legal assistance, and everyone else who contributed. Your voice is very important. I commend everyone who spread the word, signed, re-posted, or voiced their opinions on social media.

No matter where you are in the world, change cannot occur without people.

I’m proud of everyone who took the test this year. You persisted even though things weren’t meant to be this way.

Regardless of your score, it’s amazing that you made the most of dire conditions. I hope your future endeavors are filled with success.