Thousands of candidates who sat for the 2025 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) are preparing to sue the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB), citing widespread technical issues and incomplete exam questions that they claim compromised the integrity of the test.
JAMB recently announced that over 1.5 million of the 1.9 million candidates — about 79% — scored below 200. Only 12,414 candidates, representing less than one percent, scored 300 or above. The dismal performance has sparked nationwide outrage, with students and parents flooding social media to demand a review of the results.
Despite mounting pressure, JAMB spokesperson Fabian Benjamin maintained that the results accurately reflected candidates’ performance. Meanwhile, the Minister of Education, Dr. Tunji Alausa, attributed the mass failure to the board’s strengthened efforts against exam malpractice.
However, education advocate and CEO of Educare, Alex Onyia, announced on Sunday that legal action against JAMB will begin at the Federal High Court on Monday. Onyia said more than 8,000 affected students have submitted formal complaints, demanding transparency.
“Currently, we have 8,391 students who have reported glitches in the 2025 UTME,” Onyia posted on X (formerly Twitter) via @winexv. “There is ample evidence that JAMB’s system failed, inflicting significant mental stress on the students. We are demanding access to full mark sheets, correct answers, and a clear process for disputing results.”
One candidate who sat the exam at a CBT centre in Maitama, Abuja, said, “During my Use of English exam, several questions were missing. I raised the issue, and I wasn’t alone. I scored 170, but JAMB hasn’t addressed the problem.”
Another candidate, who sat for the exam on April 26, expressed disbelief at her result. “Last year, I scored 287. This year, I got 173. Many of us noticed missing English questions. That score can’t be mine.”
Parents are also speaking out. “We’re calling for a remark,” said one concerned parent. “These are brilliant students scoring under 200. Something clearly went wrong, and JAMB has yet to provide answers. This issue cannot be ignored.”
