The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) has condemned the multiple SMS charges on candidates’ phones attempting to register for the 2018 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) and Direct Entry (DE) by telecommunications’ firms enlisted to provide profile code creation services through sending and receiving of messages.
JAMB had directed the telecom companies to charge only N50 per SMS to use the service. In a statement yesterday by its Public Relations Officer (PRO), Mr. Fabian Benjamin, the board lamented that candidates are made to repeat these SMS commands several times either due to poor network or processing failure leading to rapid response(s) after the command is sent.
“The board therefore advises telecom service providers to stop the multiple charges and stick to the agreement reached with the Board. “Candidates who are victims of these multiple charges are to raise a complaint support ticket on support.jamb.gov.ng for redress and further action by the board. The Board would insist on a refund by any telecoms firm that continues to charge these candidates twice. We are mindful of the nation’s network challenges and do not expect the candidates to pay for the Telecoms infrastructural difficulties.
Besides, the board has also faulted the claim by the Colleges of Education Academic Staff Union (COEASU) that it placed universities over and above colleges of education in the choices for candidates seeking admissions into tertiary institutions in Nigeria.
The COEASU had claimed that the board placed more priority in terms of choice by making universities first (1st) choice and colleges of education third (3rd) choice, which is responsible for making colleges of education dumping ground and less attractive as more brilliant candidates would have chosen universities first.
But the JAMB stated: “The board wishes to correct this erroneous impression. Our advertisement typically, including this year, requests candidates to make any institution as their first choice, colleges of education inclusive. Our caption has always been
“Order of choice of Institutions: Every candidate is to note that the 1st choice can be a college of education, university, innovation enterprise institution and so on.
“This was made clear to COEASU during their visit with copies of our adverts provided to them. It is strange to the board for COEASU to issue such a misleading communique. We have never placed any candidate(s) nor advise candidates on the choice of institution, as it is the candidates’ volition to determine which institution to pick as their first choice and also which course to study. Candidates are at liberty to choose any institution they desire.
“The board restates that the 2018 application documents published in the national dailies are clear, self-explanatory and devoid of any priority or preference as alleged by COEASU.”
