JAMB to Review 2025 UTME Results Amid Surge in Complaints and Technical Glitch Allegations

Over 75% of candidates scored below 200 as students, parents demand transparency

The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) has announced that it will conduct a comprehensive review of the 2025 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) results following a wave of public complaints from candidates, parents, and education stakeholders.

The decision was confirmed in an official notice from the board’s headquarters in Abuja. According to the notice, the review meeting will take place on Thursday and will include a cross-section of Nigeria’s educational leaders — from vice-chancellors and rectors to ICT experts and school principals — to examine the conduct and outcome of the nationwide examination.

“In furtherance of the commitment of the board to earn public confidence in its processes, the management has approved your participation to be part of the review panel… with the mandate to identify challenges, if any, and proffer relevant recommendations to prevent a recurrence,” the notice read.

The meeting follows widespread dissatisfaction over the recently released results, with many candidates alleging technical issues during the examination and questioning the scoring methodology used by the board.

Poor Results Spark Outrage

Of the 1,955,069 results processed by JAMB, over 1.5 million candidates — more than 75 percent — scored below 200 out of a maximum 400 marks. Only 12,414 candidates (0.63 percent) scored 300 and above, and just 4,756 candidates (0.24 percent) scored 320 or higher.

The breakdown of the results is as follows:

• 334,560 candidates (17.11%) scored between 200–249

• 983,187 candidates (50.29%) scored between 160–199

• 488,197 candidates (24.97%) scored between 140–159

• 2,031 candidates (0.10%) scored below 100

The results have led to a surge of criticism on social media and offline. Some affected candidates have rejected their scores, claiming the results do not reflect their actual performance. Others have cited login issues, computer malfunctions, and test submission errors as reasons for their poor showing.

A group of over 8,000 candidates has reportedly submitted official complaints to JAMB. Some parents and students have also threatened legal action against the board, calling for a full investigation into the technical operations of the exam.

JAMB Responds

In response, JAMB’s spokesperson, Dr. Fabian Benjamin, said the board had fast-tracked its annual post-examination review process to investigate the complaints. He said JAMB was “particularly concerned about the unusual complaints originating from a few states,” and that experts had been engaged to assess the situation.

“We are currently scrutinising these complaints in detail to identify and rectify any potential technical issues,” Benjamin said.

JAMB explained that its review typically covers three stages: registration, examination, and result release. It assured the public that any candidate genuinely affected by disruptions would be given an opportunity to retake the exam.

Minister Backs Tougher Integrity Measures

Reacting to the controversy, Minister of Education, Dr. Tunji Alausa, said the poor performance was an indication that anti-malpractice reforms were working.

“The results show that our examination integrity efforts are paying off,” the minister stated. “We will not compromise standards, and the days of inflated scores due to cheating are over.”

JAMB Registrar, Prof. Ishaq Oloyede, also weighed in, saying the 2025 performance was consistent with previous years. In 2024, 76 percent of UTME candidates scored below 200, while in 2022, that number rose to 78 percent.

“There is nothing unusual about this year. The results align with the trends of the past 12 years,” Oloyede said.

What Comes Next?

The Thursday review panel will include representatives from:

• All Nigeria Confederation of Principals of Secondary Schools (ANCOPSS)

• National Association of Proprietors of Private Schools (NAPPS)

• Computer Professionals Registration Council of Nigeria (CPN)

• Educational Assessment and Research Network

• Various public and private universities and polytechnics

JAMB emphasized that the panelists are serving voluntarily and will not be paid by the board.

Meanwhile, aggrieved candidates continue to call on JAMB to publicly disclose its grading system and provide subject-by-subject breakdowns for all scores.

As scrutiny intensifies, JAMB’s handling of the review and its responsiveness to stakeholders’ concerns could prove pivotal in restoring trust in one of Nigeria’s most critical educational gateways.

Ogun Set to Host Most Ambitious National Sports Festival Yet – NSC Chairman*

_as NSC Affirms State’s Readiness Ahead of Gateway Games 2024_

The National Sports Commission (NSC) has officially confirmed that Ogun State is fully prepared to host the 22nd edition of the National Sports Festival, following a comprehensive inspection tour of competition venues, logistics hubs, and athlete accommodations across the state.

Led by NSC Chairman Mallam Shehu Dikko, the Commission’s delegation visited key facilities including the MKO Abiola International Stadium, Alake Sports Centre, Remo Stars Sports Complex, and Babcock University, which will serve as the athletes’ village for the Festival.

The Gateway Games 2024, scheduled to run from May 16 to 30, will bring together thousands of athletes and officials from across Nigeria, competing in more than 32 disciplines, making it one of the largest and most inclusive editions in the Festival’s history.

Speaking after the tour, NSC Chairman Mallam Shehu Dikko expressed deep confidence in Ogun’s capacity to deliver a landmark event. According to him, “What I have seen here in Ogun is more than infrastructure. It is intent readiness, and ambition. Ogun is set to deliver a brilliant National Sports Festival that will raise the bar and define the standard for future games across Nigeria.”

Reaffirming the state’s commitment, Governor Dapo Abiodun assured the Commission and the Nigerian people of Ogun’s readiness to deliver a historic Games. “We consider it an honour and a responsibility to host this historic Festival. Every facility, every logistic, every detail has been prepared to showcase the best of Ogun and the promise of Nigeria. The Gateway Games will be a model of what’s possible when states align with national vision,” the Governor said.

As the lead agency for sports governance in Nigeria, the National Sports Commission continues to play a central role in coordinating nationwide sports development delivery, enforcing standards, and deepening synergy across all tiers of government. The success of the Gateway Games will serve as a blueprint for future sports development initiatives under the Renewed Hope Agenda of the Tinubu administration.

When Greed Overrides Wisdom: How Atiku and the PDP Squandered a Winning Coalition

By George Omagbemi Sylvester

It is a tragedy, an unforgivable political miscalculation that Nigeria’s main opposition parties, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and the Labour Party (LP), willingly forfeited their best chance at national redemption. They did not lose because of APC’s strength or Tinubu’s so-called masterstroke. They lost because of arrogance, greed and an unforgivable betrayal of their most strategic internal voices; the G-5 Governors.

Those who have neither deep pockets nor godfather connections, those without bullion vans or foreign campaign donors have always deserved more respect in the political equation. Yet, under the leadership of Atiku Abubakar, the PDP arrogantly reduced its broad-based support system into a cult of cash-driven influence. That was the death knell.

The PDP’s fatal sin was not just fielding Atiku Abubakar as its 2023 presidential candidate, it was turning its back on the five governors who had stood by the party in its darkest hours: Nyesom Wike (Rivers), Samuel Ortom (Benue), Okezie Ikpeazu (Abia), Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi (Enugu), and Seyi Makinde (Oyo). Known as the G-5 or Integrity Governors, they embodied the ideological, ethnic and political balance the PDP needed. But they were cast aside in favor of Atiku’s ambition.

The Arrogance of Imposition

Atiku Abubakar’s emergence in 2023 was an imposition, not a consensus. The PDP’s constitution and internal rotational agreements clearly stated that power should return to the South after President Buhari’s eight years. Instead, Atiku, a northerner like Buhari, bulldozed his way back to the presidential ticket, forcing Southerners to take the back seat in a party they helped build from the ground up.

Worse still, he made no effort to negotiate or pacify aggrieved blocs. The G-5 demanded only one thing: that the party’s national chairman, Iyorchia Ayu (also from the North), step down to reflect regional balance. Atiku refused.

As Wike bluntly put it: “You can’t have the presidential candidate and national chairman from the same region. What kind of party is that?” His warning was dismissed as noise.

The Fallout of Betrayal

That betrayal fractured the PDP irrevocably. In the 2023 presidential election, the PDP lost four of the five G-5 states. Rivers State previously a PDP fortress went to Tinubu. Oyo voted APC. Benue abandoned the PDP. Enugu and Abia turned out weak figures for the party. The Labour Party won most of the Southeast, capitalizing on PDP’s internal betrayal.

The outcome was predictable. You don’t alienate your most strategic governors and expect miracles at the polls.

In politics, optics and loyalty matter as much as money and strategy. But Atiku and his loyalists failed to understand that a campaign fueled by dollars without grassroots integrity is destined to fail. That is why, despite being on his fifth presidential attempt, Atiku still could not win the trust of Nigerians.

Labour Party: A Missed Opportunity as Well

The Labour Party, though fresh in its appeal, also failed to capitalize on this disaffection. Rather than build strategic alliances with aggrieved PDP factions like the G-5, Peter Obi ran a largely solo campaign. The LP mistook social media applause for political structure. That was a costly misreading of Nigerian politics.

In a nation where governors still control the levers of power, delegates, logistics and security but ignoring the G-5 bloc was an amateur mistake. With Wike’s war chest and Ortom’s moral voice, LP could have formed a Southern alliance strong enough to break APC’s northern grip.

But egos got in the way.

A Nation Betrayed by Its Opposition

This is not just the failure of a party, it is the failure of Nigeria’s democratic opposition. Instead of rising above selfish ambition, opposition parties became fractured camps driven by personal goals. Atiku wanted to be President at all costs. Obi wanted to prove he could do it without them. The result? Bola Ahmed Tinubu, the godfather of Lagos politics walked into Aso Rock with just 36% of the total vote, the lowest winning margin in Nigerian history.

To quote Chinua Achebe, “The trouble with Nigeria is simply and squarely a failure of leadership.” Nowhere is this more evident than in the opposition’s refusal to work together.

Money Bags vs. Grassroots Integrity

For too long, Nigerian politics has favored the “money bags” politicians whose wealth determines their worth. But the G-5 were not just governors. They were symbols of the battle against a system rigged against internal democracy. By demanding equity in leadership and power rotation, they were fighting for the soul of the party.

Atiku and his camp chose to mock them, label them “rebels,” and remove them from the decision-making table. That was short-sighted. What is the value of a presidential ticket if you can’t carry your strongest foot soldiers along?

The Integrity That Was Ignored

Samuel Ortom stood firmly against Fulani herdsmen attacks and spoke truth to federal power at a time others cowered. Ikpeazu and Ugwuanyi stabilized volatile states in the Southeast. Makinde emerged as one of the most popular PDP governors in the Southwest. And Wike say what you will is one of the few governors who stood firm for the PDP during the APC storm from 2015 onwards. These were not rebels. These were warriors. The PDP chose to insult them instead of rewarding their loyalty.

The Consequences Are Still Unfolding

Today, the PDP is a shell of itself. Internally broken, externally defeated, ideologically confused. The party has lost the trust of the South, the votes of the Middle Belt and the coordination that once made it a national force.

Labour Party, now grappling with internal leadership crises and court cases, is also at risk of becoming another elitist club without grassroots cohesion.

If a coalition had been formed between the G-5, the LP and select APC defectors in 2023, Nigeria could have had a different President today. But instead, the people were robbed of that possibility by egos and elite blindness.

Quotes That Echo Loudly

“Politics is too serious a matter to be left to the politicians,” Charles de Gaulle once said. Sadly, Nigeria’s opposition parties proved that quote accurate. They had the chance to rescue the nation from decades of rot. Instead, they chose themselves.

The G-5 were not perfect, but they understood what many in PDP and LP failed to grasp: winning elections requires unity, structure, and sincerity of purpose not just ambition and money.

As Nelson Mandela once said, “It is better to lead from behind and to put others in front.” Atiku and the PDP elite did the opposite. They led from the front, with no army behind them.

In Conclusion: Lessons for 2027

If the opposition is to have any chance in 2027, they must start now not with ticket hoarding or backroom deals, but with sincerity and unity. Let there be no repeat of the betrayal of the G-5 governors. Let power rotation be respected. Let alliances be based on principle not just platform.

The future of Nigeria’s democracy depends not only on who is in power but on how those who seek power treat one another.

The G-5 are still relevant. Ignore them again and Nigeria may suffer the same fate, a recycled presidency, imposed leadership and dashed hope.