“Let JAMB and Prof. Oloyede Be!” — Francis Ewherido Defends JAMB Boss Amid Criticism

I greatly admire Prof. Ishaq Oloyede, the Registrar of the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB). Although I haven’t met him in person, I respect him greatly. One of the characteristics of influential persons is that. You can sense their beneficial influence on society without actually knowing them or coming into contact with them. I don’t want to write about him again because I’ve already written two articles on him. Today, I’m concentrating on the 2025 JAMB Exam, the widespread failure, and the ensuing controversy.

Since “I prepared very well and the answers were easy,” he received a score above 200, which was below his expectations, according to one of my patients who sat the exam in Lagos. He also told me that the majority of his classmates received scores below 200.

Like many disputes in contemporary Nigeria, ethnic coloration has been read into the ongoing commotion. Although Prof. Oloyede is a Yoruba man and a devoted Muslim, I have not noticed any ethnic or religious coloration in any of his public office deeds. Given that Oloyede won’t go out of his way to cause kids from a certain ethnic group or religion to fail horribly, it’s possible that a saboteur created the glitch that resulted in the mass failure.

He has no justification for doing so. He is well-informed and aware of the pointlessness. I’ve come to know him as a good man, and last Wednesday during a news conference, he sobbed and openly acknowledged his mistakes.

Some folks who lean cynical and have religious and ethnic biases are not pleased. They have called for his resignation, viewing his actions as an attempt to win over the public with crocodile tears. Professor Oloyede is not acting since he is not an actor. He teaches Islamic studies as a professor. He doesn’t perform for the audience either. He doesn’t have to.

He is not one of those rigid bosses who will stop at nothing to maintain their position of authority. He’s a simple man, and when you lead a simple life, it’s easy to meet your basic wants. It lessens the desire to hold onto power.

Oloyede is sincere. In a society where those in positions of authority would rather insult those who hold different opinions than simply apologize, where those in positions of power would rather spend millions of naira painting a wrong to be right, and where people in positions of authority have made mistakes and publicly accepted responsibility, he has done so.

The question is, what is the next step? For the 379,997 impacted candidates to reprint their slips for the rescheduled exams on Friday and Saturday, he promised that they would be notified via Short Message Service (SMS) by last Thursday. Some of my classmates received the SMS to take their exam today (Saturday), my ward confirmed to me. I long for Nigeria like this. Admit mistakes and propose fixes right away. We must make mistakes because we are human. Every society experiences it. What is your response? We have failed in that regard. What has stopped or halted our country’s advancement is our response.

Some have demanded that JAMB be discontinued. Many of us either speak spontaneously or without knowing all the facts before speaking. Since Oloyede became JAMB’s registrar, go review the records. Operations, trust, and transparency have all significantly improved. In actuality, JAMB outperforms several other government-owned organizations and the national average in terms of accountability and efficiency. And because of a single bug, you want JAMB to be discontinued?

As was the case before JAMB’s establishment, some have advocated for individual universities to manage their admissions. I’m completely against it. The times have evolved. Then, there were important requirements that were clearly stated. Back then, Nigeria was a much cleaner and saner society. Merit, accountability, transparency, and probity have all declined. The rot has not spared the ivory tower. There was still sanity in the 1980s when I was a university student. I began to hear of lecturers getting sorted out (bribed) around the 1990s. I don’t know, but it might have also occurred in the 1980s and earlier.

Although there were fewer instances of sexual harassment in the 1980s than there are today, I cannot guarantee that anything that can go wrong won’t go wrong if men and women are together. Before some academics and lecturers were found guilty and imprisoned, while others were shamed, it was truly widespread a few years ago. It is still there, but it has decreased. These days, it extends beyond sexual harassment. There is now sex for grades.

Additionally, how government subsidies and internally generated income are used by certain colleges is opaque. Allegedly, research grants have also been misappropriated. How many universities can confidently submit to an audit by external auditors hired by the government? Subsequently, several unions will threaten to strike.

I saw that one university was turning out a lot of people with doctorates. Although it’s a positive development, I choose to look further. I inquired with an insider who ought to be aware of whether each PhD degree granted was justified. Some were bought, but many were earned, he said with a smile. I’m not referring to honorary doctorates. I’m referring to the one given out when a pupil is judged deserving of it in terms of both learning and character.

The Anus is like Nigerians. Almost no anus is complete without some sh*t. Some are simply cleaner than others. However, people who have anus problems should “off their mics.” Go with clean hands if you want equity.

You beg for equity, but your hands can’t be dirty. Universities holding their entrance tests is perfectly acceptable, but not in the current circumstances at certain Nigerian universities. A large number of JAMB exam takers are younger than 18. In Nigeria, 18 is the legal age of consent. We must not expose young girls to sexual exploitation. Let’s not make it easier for parents to be extorted by people who are responsible for admission to Nigerian colleges. It’s already very common.

Leave Oloyede and JAMB alone. As the vice chancellor of the University of Ilorin, the registrar of JAMB, and a devout Muslim, Oloyede has demonstrated himself to be a man of integrity.

You recall how he revealed the embezzlement of funds at the Abuja National Mosque. More Oloyedes are needed in Nigeria. Nothing endures forever. After his two terms, Oloyede will step down as JAMB’s registrar. More crucially, our institutions must be strengthened so that JAMB may grow under the new registrar who takes over following Oloyede’s term.

Regarding Nigerian universities, you should straighten up before asking to have JAMB discontinued. Everyone will be able to see it when the time comes. Let Oloyede and JAMB be for the time being. They never claimed to be perfect. He came sincerely to apologize for that reason.