In a dramatic turn of events, the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) has publicly admitted to widespread technical and administrative errors during the 2025 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME), sparking nationwide concerns, and legal threats.
It was gathered that Timilehin Faith Opesusi, a 19-year-old candidate from Odogunyan, Ikorodu, Lagos, took her own life after receiving a score of 190. According to reports, Opesusi, who had been staying with her sister, ingested rodent poison on Monday after lamenting her performance.
At a press briefing held in Abuja, the Registrar of JAMB, Prof. Ishaq Oloyede, tearfully apologised to candidates and parents, acknowledging that glitches had marred the examination process for hundreds of thousands of students.
“What should have been a moment of joy has changed due to one or two errors,” Oloyede confessed. “I apologise for the trauma caused the candidates.”
According to JAMB, a total of 379,997 candidates were affected in Lagos and the South East zone. In Lagos alone, 206,610 candidates across 65 centres experienced disruptions. An additional 173,387 candidates in 92 centres in the South East, including the Owerri zone, also faced significant challenges.
Oloyede, who took responsibility for what he described as a “sabotage” of the 2025 UTME, said the affected candidates will start getting text messages from the Board starting Thursday.
“The affected candidates will start getting text messages for reschedule starting from tomorrow.
“I apologise, I take full responsibility.”
The UTME, a vital prerequisite for university admissions in Nigeria, saw over 1.9 million candidates participate this year. However, over 1.5 million candidates scored below 200 out of 400, a figure that has triggered intense scrutiny and concern among stakeholders in the education sector.
Adding to the controversy, Prof. Oloyede disclosed that 80 individuals are currently under investigation for various examination malpractices, with Anambra State recording the highest number of suspects with 14 in total. JAMB also revealed that 467 underage candidates had sat the exam and scored above the cut-off mark, while 50 candidates have been linked directly to cheating.
Furthermore, 39,834 results are currently being withheld pending investigations into possible misconduct.
Meanwhile, aggrieved candidates and parents have begun threatening legal action against the examination body. Advocacy groups and education stakeholders are calling for an independent probe into the conduct of the 2025 UTME and the implementation of compensation and remediation measures for affected candidates.
The Federal Ministry of Education is yet to issue an official response. However, public outcry continues to mount as Nigerians grapple with the implications of what is now widely regarded as one of the most controversial UTME cycles in recent history.
