 and the Federal Ministry of Education for their handling of the technical issues that marred the 2025 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) results.){kind=link}
Former Education Minister, Dr. Oby Ezekwesili, has sharply criticised the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) and the Federal Ministry of Education for their handling of the technical issues that marred the 2025 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) results.
Her reaction comes after JAMB Registrar, Prof. Ishaq Oloyede, became emotional during a press briefing on Wednesday, where he apologised for the irregularities and announced that students affected by the glitches would be allowed to retake the exam.
In a statement posted on her official X (formerly Twitter) account on Thursday, Ezekwesili questioned why the authorities initially dismissed early complaints rather than investigating them with urgency and openness.
“Why didn’t the relevant agencies immediately respond with humility and a thorough system audit when irregular patterns began to emerge? Instead, they rushed to discredit concerned citizens,” she wrote.
The former minister also criticised what she described as a lack of professionalism in the explanations provided by both JAMB and the Ministry of Education, particularly in regard to unusual results recorded in the five South-East states.
“Rather than relying on data-driven analysis, they gave anecdotal and dismissive responses. Technical issues demand technical solutions, but unfortunately, professionalism is now absent in the toxic environment fostered by dishonest and incompetent officials who should know better,” she added.
Ezekwesili also shared screenshots of past tweets from 2018 and 2023, pointing out her consistent calls for transparency and reform in the management of public examinations.
One tweet from July 2018 referenced her suggestion that an Education Minister who focuses more on revenue than integrity in examination systems should be reassigned to work at a toll gate.
She also revisited the 2023 case of Anambra student Mmesoma Ejikeme, whom JAMB accused of altering her UTME score.
At the time, Ezekwesili called for a forensic investigation to establish the facts, stressing the need for independent, tech-driven scrutiny in such controversies.
Her recent comments have reignited public discourse over the credibility of JAMB’s processes and the overall performance of the education ministry in safeguarding examination integrity.