The Obidient Movement on Thursday expressed “deep concern” over the unfolding drama surrounding the recently released Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) results, saying that Professor Ishaq Oloyede, the Registrar of Joint Admission and Matriculation Board (JAMB), should resign “for gross incompetence and a demonstrable lack of capacity.”
The Movement said it is disheartening that Professor Oloyede “has once again found himself at the centre of a controversy marked by glaring incompetence and poorly managed examination logistics – this time affecting over 379,997 candidates across the entire South-East and Lagos.
“While we acknowledge that technical glitches can occasionally occur in the execution of large-scale national undertakings such as the UTME, the situation at hand appears far less accidental and more symptomatic of institutional ineptitude. What is even more troubling is the sluggish and unimpressive response by JAMB in attempting to address the crisis.”
According to a statement by the groups Director, Strategic Communications & Media Directorate, Nana Kazaure, the Obidient Movement said that “first, the Registrar’s resort to emotional theatrics – particularly his public shedding of tears during a press briefing – is nothing short of nauseating. This performative act fits an all-too-familiar pattern employed by public officials when caught in the web of failure, aimed at distracting rather than resolving.
“Second, the decision to compel affected candidates to sit for a fresh examination reeks of confusion and administrative disarray. The Registrar himself admitted during his disjointed media engagement that the issue was not a technical fault, but human error. If that is the case, why punish the candidates with a second test? Is it that JAMB lacks the technological capacity to retrieve and validate the original digital answer scripts?
“Third, the plan to notify affected candidates via bulk SMS introduces another layer of chaos. It is well-established that bulk messaging systems deliver with only about a 50–60% success rate. What then becomes the fate of candidates who, through no fault of theirs, never receive such notifications?
“Given the foregoing, we demand the immediate resignation of the JAMB Registrar, Prof. Ishaq Oloyede, for gross incompetence and a demonstrable lack of capacity to continue managing the affairs of JAMB.”
