House Divided over Motion to Scrap Post-UTME

House of Representatives members were divided at the plenary recently over a motion to scrap post-Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) being conducted by universities across the country for candidates seeking academic admission.

While some lawmakers spoke in favour of the motion to scrap the post-UTME, some expressed reservations and asked for it to be retained.

The motion was moved by Hon. Ademorin Kuye at the plenary yesterday which was presided over by the Deputy Speaker, Ibrahim Wase.

He said that the Act establishing the Joint Admission and Matriculation Board (JAMB) states that only the body has the right to conduct examinations after charging fees, give undergraduate admissions, carry out placements in universities, polytechnics and Colleges of Education, adding that other universities are only supposed to send their requirements and preferences.

Kuye said the only exception is post-graduate admissions, stressing that today, universities charge another amount, sometimes higher than JAMB’s to conduct a parallel examination, which clearly defies the Act, while also giving admissions using methods known to no one else.

The lawmaker stated categorically that post-UTME infringes on the sole right of JAMB to give admissions.

 

Kuye said the House in 2016 ordered the Ministry of Education and the National  University Commission (NUC)to ensure the immediate abolition of post-UTME in the universities, a decision he said was hailed by parents who felt that they were being used as cows to be milked.

The House member stressed that post-UTME is not transparent, and that it is even more fraud-prone than JAMB Computer Based Test (CBT) which he said  had greatly reduced fraud, eliminating text message answers, buying answers online and impersonation.

Kuye argued that post-UTME is not standardised, and the process is fraud-prone, while the money realised is serving as a slush fund for universities to loot as it is unaccounted for.

He said JAMB remains a major examination that could never be replaced by the schemes of money-for-grades lecturers, as it was established in 1978 and saddled with the responsibility of conducting matriculation examinations into tertiary institutions.

However, Hon. Chinedu Benjamin, who spoke in favour of the motion, lamented that the country's education has been reduced to some form of extortion, adding that post-UTME has no educational value to the system.

In his contribution, Kalu said the post-UTME is casting aspersions on the integrity of JAMB, admitting there are leakages, and that there is need for JAMB to sit up, as he said duplicating it function would not help the country.

Also, Hon. Abdulmumini Mohammed, said Nigerian youths and the less privileged are being denied access to education as regards this post UTME.

Speaking against the motion, Hon. Samuel Chinedu said the members should look at the good side of post-UTME.

Hon. Ifon Patrick said if the results of JAMB are allowed to be used as the only tool for assessment, then the country would be getting it wrong.

On his part, Hon. Aniekan Umanah said universities are exploiting the internal leakages on what JAMB is doing, stressing that there was need for the motion to be revisited again so that the lawmakers can have a common ground.

The House however adopted the motion with a resolution that its committee on Tertiary Education and Services should interface with JAMB on post-UTME and report back within four weeks.