Firstsitenews-The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) has announced that it will release the results of 379,000 candidates who sat for the rescheduled Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) between Friday and Monday. The announcement follows the decision to offer a resit after widespread criticism and concerns over mass failure in the initial UTME.
The board attributed the poor performance largely to technical and human errors, particularly in Lagos and the South-East. Out of the 1.9 million candidates who took the original UTME, over 1.5 million scored below 200 out of a possible 400, sparking national concern.
JAMB Registrar, Prof. Ishaq Oloyede, had previously admitted fault for the glitches and became emotional during the announcement of the resit. Speaking to The PUNCH on Monday, JAMB spokesperson Dr. Fabian Benjamin confirmed that the results of the rescheduled exams would be released on Wednesday.
Oloyede revealed that a total of 379,997 candidates were affected — 206,610 from Lagos and 173,387 from South-East states. He described the disruptions as acts of “sabotage” and said affected candidates were notified via text message starting last Thursday.
From the original 1,955,069 UTME results processed, only 4,756 candidates (0.24%) scored 320 and above, while another 7,658 (0.39%) scored between 300 and 319. In total, just 12,414 candidates (0.63%) scored 300 or higher.
Additionally:
73,441 candidates (3.76%) scored between 250–299
334,560 (17.11%) scored between 200–249
983,187 (50.29%) scored between 160–199
488,197 (24.97%) scored between 140–159
57,419 (2.94%) scored between 120–139
3,820 (0.20%) scored between 100–119
2,031 (0.10%) scored below 100
These statistics show that more than 75% of all candidates scored below 200, intensifying doubts about the integrity of the exam process.
Meanwhile, the South-East Caucus in the House of Representatives has called for the resignation of JAMB Registrar Prof. Oloyede, citing “catastrophic institutional failure” in the conduct of the 2025 UTME.
In a statement signed by Rep. Iduma Igariwey (PDP, Ebonyi), the caucus criticised JAMB’s poor communication, short notice for the rescheduled exams, and clashes with ongoing WAEC papers, all of which they said have caused undue stress to students and families.
The lawmakers said, “As a caucus, we are deeply concerned, as all five South-East states were affected by the so-called ‘score distortions’.” They called for the total cancellation of the 2025 UTME and the scheduling of a new exam after the ongoing WAEC and NECO exams.
They also demanded the suspension of key officials in charge of JAMB’s digital and logistics operations, insisting that responsibility must go beyond public apologies.
“While we commend Prof. Oloyede’s transparency, the remedial actions taken so far have been grossly inadequate,” the caucus stated. “Students were given less than 48 hours' notice to sit for the rescheduled UTME, which, in many cases, clashed with WAEC papers. This is unacceptable and unjust.”
Quoting Section 18(1) of the 1999 Constitution, the lawmakers stressed that government has a constitutional duty to ensure equal and adequate education opportunities for all — a right they say has been denied to many students in the South-East due to JAMB’s failings.
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