By Maazi Tochukwu Ezeoke
Lagos -April 29, 2025
The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) recently responded to Peter Obi’s criticism of their scheduling for the 2025 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME). In their post on X, JAMB claimed that the UTME commences at 8:00 AM, not 6:00 AM as Obi suggested, with verification starting at 6:30 AM to allow candidates to settle in. While JAMB’s intent to clarify may seem noble, their response is a textbook case of misdirection that glosses over the real issue: their scheduling puts Nigerian students at serious risk. Peter Obi’s concerns are not only valid but backed by overwhelming evidence, and it’s time JAMB stops misinforming the public and takes accountability for the systemic failures they perpetuate.
Let’s start with the real meat of JAMB’s rebuttal. They assert that Obi’s claim of a 6:00 AM exam start is incorrect, emphasizing that the actual exam begins at 8:00 AM. However, their own statement confirms that verification and clearance processes start at 6:30 AM. This distinction is meaningless when you consider the reality for students. As Obi pointed out, and as many Nigerians have echoed on X, students are required to arrive at exam centers by 6:30 AM to complete these processes.
If verification starts at 6:30 AM, what time should students arrive? The answer, as Obi stated, is as early as 6:00 AM—sometimes earlier for those travelling long distances. JAMB’s attempt to separate verification from the exam itself is a semantic game that ignores the practical implications for students.
Evidence of this early scheduling isn’t hard to find. X user @SavvyRinu, on April 28, 2025, stated, “All JAMB exam printouts I have seen are for 6:30 AM, yet the exam body is doubling down.” Another user, @UmarSanithecat, shared an image of a 2025 UTME exam slip clearly stating the exam date as “Thursday, April 24, 2025 by 06:30 AM.” This aligns with Peter Obi’s claim that students are being asked to attend public examinations by 6:30 AM, forcing teenagers, mostly 15 to 17 years old, to travel in the dark amidst Nigeria’s well-documented security challenges. JAMB’s insistence that the exam starts at 8:00 AM does nothing to address the fact that their own documentation and processes require students to be at the venue by 6:30 AM, exposing them to unnecessary risks.
The human cost of this scheduling is devastating, and the stories are heartbreaking.
JAMB’s justification for the early verification time—that Nigerians tend to arrive late, necessitating a buffer—reveals a troubling lack of empathy and foresight. If lateness is a concern, why not address it by increasing the number of exam centres or decentralising the process, rather than forcing vulnerable teenagers to travel in the dark? Peter Obi’s post provides a stark comparison: Nigeria, with a population of over 230 million, has only about 200 universities, a ratio of one university per million citizens. In contrast, Indonesia, with 280 million people, has over 4,000 tertiary institutions—a ratio of one per 70,000 people—and a Gross Enrollment Ratio (GER) of over 45%, compared to Nigeria’s dismal 12%, according to UNESCO data. This scarcity of educational infrastructure means Nigerian students often travel long distances to exam centres, a problem exacerbated by JAMB’s early scheduling.Historical evidence further supports Obi’s concerns. A 2024 article from Legit.ng noted that JAMB assigns candidates to centres within their chosen exam towns, but with only 887 centres nationwide for over 2 million candidates in 2025 (as reported by Tribune Online), many students are still forced to travel significant distances. For rural students, this often means leaving home as early as 4:00 AM to reach a centre by 6:30 AM, navigating poorly lit roads and areas plagued by insecurity. The Nigerian Tribune reported on April 23, 2025, that the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) issued a 72-hour ultimatum to JAMB to adjust the UTME schedule, citing safety concerns for students travelling at such hours. JAMB’s failure to address these systemic issues while doubling down on their timeline is reckless and indefensible.
Moreover, JAMB’s claim of ensuring candidates are “properly prepared” rings hollow when you consider the psychological toll of their policies. Teenagers, already under immense pressure to perform in a high-stakes exam, are subjected to additional stress by having to wake up in the pre-dawn hours and travel through unsafe conditions.
JAMB must stop misinforming the public with technicalities and start listening to the cries of Nigerian students and their families. The evidence is clear: their 6:30 AM verification timeline is endangering lives, and Peter Obi’s criticisms are not only accurate but urgently necessary. It’s time for JAMB to take responsibility, adjust its policies, and work toward a system that prioritises the safety and well-being of our youth. Anything less is a betrayal of the future leaders of this nation.
A new Nigeria is indeed possible—but only if institutions like JAMB stop failing our children.
