ABUJA, Nigeria — The National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) has called for the immediate resignation of the Registrar of the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB), Prof. Ishaq Oloyede, following the examination body’s admission that widespread technical errors marred the 2025 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME).
In a statement issued on Thursday, May 15, 2025, and signed by its National Public Relations Officer, Samson Adeyemi, NANS described the lapses as a “damning indictment” of JAMB’s competence and held the board accountable for the psychological toll and tragic consequences experienced by candidates.
“JAMB’s admission of errors in the released UTME results, particularly in Lagos and five South East states, is a damning indictment of the institution’s incompetence,” Adeyemi said.
“This catastrophic failure has shattered the dreams of countless students, subjected them to untold psychological distress, and, in this case, driven a young scholar to the ultimate despair. This is not just an administrative lapse, it is an institutional disgrace.”
The student body’s outrage was fuelled by the death of Faith Opesusi, a 19-year-old candidate from Ikorodu, Lagos, who reportedly died by suicide after receiving a UTME score of 146—significantly lower than her previous performance.
Her family says she took her own life shortly after checking her result on Friday, May 9, 2025.
JAMB, in a press conference on Wednesday, May 14, 2025, acknowledged that nearly 380,000 candidates across 157 centres in Lagos and the South-East were affected by technical disruptions during the examination.
Visibly emotional, Registrar Ishaq Oloyede issued a public apology and accepted full responsibility for the failures.
However, NANS insists that apologies are insufficient.
“Prof. Ishaq Oloyede must resign without delay,” Adeyemi declared.
“The leadership that presided over this disaster cannot continue to administer an examination body that holds the future of Nigerian students in its hands.”
The student body further demanded that JAMB compensate the Opesusi family, offering not just financial relief but psychological and legal support as well.
“JAMB must bear responsibility for the irreversible damage it has caused,” the statement added.
While the board has scheduled a resit for the affected candidates between May 15 and 19, NANS demanded “absolute transparency and integrity” in the process, warning that it would not tolerate any repeat of what it called “gross incompetence”.
