Peter Obi, JAMB trade words over safety of Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) candidates

The 2023 presidential candidate of the Labour Party, Peter Obi and the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) engaged in a war of words over the safety of candidates who wrote the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) Saturday.

Obi had in a post criticised the scheduling and timing of the 2025 UTME following complaints by many Nigerians that candidates were expected to be at the venue of their examination by 6.30 for verification exercise.

Questioning the safety of candidates moving in search of the examination centre at such a time, especially considering the insecurity in Nigeria, Obi described such action by JAMB as “reckless”.

He said the examination body, with such scheduling, was forcing teenagers to travel across dangerous and unfamiliar terrains in the dark.

Obi wrote on X, “Setting exams for vulnerable teenagers as early as 6:00 a.m., while transporting them across far-flung locations, is reckless.

“Who takes responsibility when a 15- or 16-year-old child disappears or is harmed while trying to access their right to education?” he queried.

He also highlighted the need for the country to improve its educational system to avoid such occurrences.

“Our young generation should not be endangered because they desire education. We must do better as a nation,” Obi added.

Responding to Obi, JAMB claimed that the examination was scheduled to commence at 8am.

According to the exam body, only the verification and clearance process begins at 6.30 am.

It said that the process allows candidates ample time to settle in before the commencement of the examination.

“It is imperative that candidates are afforded adequate time to settle in before the exam begins,” JAMB said in a response to Obi’s post on X.