The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) on Monday said female candidates, wearing hijab should submit themselves to security checks before accessing the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) halls.
The Board’s Head of the Media and Information, Dr Fabian Benjamin, stated this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Lagos.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that more than 1.8 million candidates, including the blind and prison inmates are participating in this year’s UTME, which commenced on Saturday, Feb. 27.
A NAN correspondent who went round the Lagos metropolis, reports that more than 500 centres are also being used for the examination on the all Computer Based Test (CBT) platform.
According to the JAMB coordinator, National Headquarters Annex, Lagos, Dr (Mrs) Beatrice Okorie, the examination at the various centres in Lagos, has so far not recorded any major hitch.
Okorie described the exercise as peaceful and seamless.
At the Dalewares Institute of Technology, Bode Thomas Road, off Shyllon Bus Stop Palmgrove, the examination started very early with the accreditation of candidates.
The Centre Supervisor, Dr, Aliyu Bakori, told NAN that so far the centre had recorded no hitch.
According to him, there has been no technical hitch since the examination began and candidates keep to their respective time for the examination, which holds in three batches.
Bakori warned candidates to keep to the rules of the examination in order to avoid unnecessary delay in participating in the examination.
He also spoke on the female candidates who wear hijab to the examination centres, adding that JAMB was not against wearing of any particular dress.
“We are not against any one dressing in the manner that suits him or her, particularly if it has to do with one’s religious belief.
“However, in every examination, there are rules and candidates must strive to adhere to such rules.
“We are not going to stop anyone from taking the examination but the rule remains that if one is wearing things such as scarf and hijab, you must submit to security checks at such centre.
“It is just a simple rule and candidates should try and cooperate with the examiners to make it easy for us all,’’ he told NAN. (NAN)