Lawmaker, NGO Seek Quick Passage of JAMB Validity Bill

Kemi Olaitan in Ibadan 

A member of the House of Representatives, Hon. Tolulope Akande-Sadipe, and a non-governmental organisation (NGO), Speak Out Africa, have reinforced the need for the pending bill on the validity of United Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) to be made top priority in the 10th Assembly.

The lawmaker, who made the call during an online seminar, said the Joint Admission and Matriculation Board (JAMB), should not be a revenue generating agency for the government, stating that UTME supervised by the board should not be an examination that will be conducted every year.

 She reiterated that JAMB should not be assessed on the revenue generated to the coffers of the federal government, rather it should be assessed on the quality of examination they give.

The lawmaker, who is representing Oluyole Federal Constituency, added that with the laying of the amendment on the bill at the floor of the House, and it is passed for an assent by the President, UTME will have a validity of three years, noting that the bill seeks to increase the validity of results of UTME from one year to five years but reduced to three years.

While making comparison with examinations across the world, she maintained that the tenures/validity of other internationally recognised examinations last up to two to five years, referring participants to examinations of international standards such as GMAT, GRE, IELTS, TETOFL, SAT, MCAT, PTE, and USMLE.

Akande-Sadipe said she is passionate about the bill as there are many victims of the JAMB yearly tests, stating that a student who passes UTME should not sit for the examination repeatedly, rather the result should be valid for about three years.

According to her, “I am not asking that the exam tenure be extended in cases where people fail. I am asking that it should be extended when people pass. In Nigeria, every year you take JAMB and you don’t get into University you have to repeat JAMB. Why?

“168, 613 students scored 200 and above in the 2021 UTME; 236,936 scored 190 and above; 327, 624 scored 180, but less than 100 students got admitted into Tertiary institutions. Of the 600 eligible applicants, only about 100 representing 16.67 per cent of candidates got their admission uploaded on the Central Admission Processing System (CAPS).

“I sponsored the bill on March 16, 2022, on the floor of the House of Representatives, but because of the magnitude of bills that go to the floor of the House, the bill has gotten to the committee level and we are almost there.

I pray the bill becomes a reality. If it becomes a reality, it will take a lot of hardship away from many homes.”

Akande-Sadipe added that some of the arguments against the bill include JAMB is a revenue generating agency; disguised unemployment and the dichotomy between achievement test and aptitude test, insisting that UTME should be a test to assess one’s readiness to go to the university and a candidate’s readiness should not change after attempting and passing it once.

The Convener, Speak-out Africa, Ms. Agwu Blessing Newest, while speaking on behalf of the participants, lauded the lawmaker for championing a course that will be of benefit to the less-privileged in the society, describing her as an instrument for poor Nigerian students who have been victims of yearly JAMB examinations.