JAMB Should Be Made to Suspend Computer-based Exams - House of Reps Charge FG

 

 

The House of Representatives made the charge on Thursday directing the Federal Government to ask JAMB to suspend the computer based 2016 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination test.

 

The decision of the House was sequel to the adoption of the prayers of a motion brought under matters of urgent public importance by a member, Hon. Oghene Egoh (PDP-Lagos).

 

The lawmaker while moving the motion said there was need for JAMB to revert to the paper examination until the board was ready to conduct a hitch-free Computer Based Test (CBT).

 

According to him, over a million candidates who sat for the computer based UTME recorded various degrees of technical hitches.

 

The technical hitches, he said, jeopardised the candidates’ chances of gaining admission into the universities.

 

His words: “Already serious admission problem is rocking the nation because already JAMB receives huge allocation from Federal Government every year.

“Yet they charge candidates all manner of fees and majority of the children do not gain admission either because of the technical hitches of the CBT or the post UTME introduced by various tertiary institutions,” Egor said.

 

Egoh said that while some candidates are getting conflicting scores in the ongoing exercise, others are complaining of malfunctioning computers.

 

He said: “There were instances of double-option answers, computers were malfunctioning and suddenly short down causing absurdity that place some candidates in disadvantaged position.”

 

Aishatu Dukku (APC-Gombe) opined that JAMB was not ready for the computer based option, adding that JAMB should “make it optional for students on whether to use computer based or pen and paper.”

 

But a member, Mohammed Zakari (APC-Kwara) said students in diaspora who are participating in the examination should be considered.

 

According to him, the computer based option would enable students abroad to participate in the examination.

 

Speaker Yakubu Dogara, in his ruling mandated the House Committee on Education to liaise with Federal Ministry of Education to ensure compliance and report back to the House within one week.