JAMB publishes names of candidates engaged in exam malpractices

Opeyemi Adelere

The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) has published the names of 195 candidates who allegedly engaged in malpractices in the just concluded Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME).

As indicated in JAMB’s weekly bulletin, released yesterday by its Head of Information and Public Affairs, Dr Fabian Benjamin, the candidates were allegedly engaged in various misconducts in the course of writing the examination.

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It noted that of the over 1.9 million candidates who sat for the UTME between March 14 and April 4, 2020, it was able to establish prima facie cases against 195 candidates for examination misconduct.

According to the Bulletin, 89 candidates were caught for examination by proxy, 32 candidates for smuggling mobile phones and devices into the examination hall, 26 candidates for convenience to cheat and 24 candidates for attempting to cheat.

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Also listed in the bulletin were nine candidates caught for unruly behaviour, seven for double registration, four   for tampering with examination documents, three for forcefully gaining entrances into examination hall, and one candidate caught with fake documents.

As revealed by the bulletin, Imo State topped the malpractice list with 28 cases, followed by Anambra, Enugu, Kaduna, Kano and Plateau states. It added that the number of malpractices recorded in this year’s UTME was on the decline, as compared to past years.

“Examination infraction in UTME is declining with the 2020 experience. However, out of the 1,945,983 million candidates who sat for the examination, Prima facie cases of examination misconduct have been made against the following (195) candidates.”

The examination body also announced nine delisted Computer Based Test centres cutting across Abia, Enugu, Kogi, Kwara, Lagos, Nassarawa, Ogun, Oyo and Kano states for what it called “technical deficiency and alleged connivance with candidates to cheat.”