The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) has blamed an ad hoc staff member for the hijab controversy at Esther Oshikoya CBT Centre in Ibadan, saying the action was not part of its official screening procedures.

JAMB’s Public Communication Adviser, Fabian Benjamin, disclosed this in a statement posted on X following public reactions to reports that some Muslim female candidates were allegedly asked to remove their hijab before entering the examination hall.

According to the board, its monitoring system detected the incident during the screening exercise for the first session of the examination held on Thursday, April 16.

JAMB said it immediately intervened by contacting the ad hoc official involved and directing that no candidate wearing hijab should be asked to remove or adjust it.

“The Board wishes to state clearly that this act was neither perpetrated by the centre nor part of its official protocol,” the statement said.

“It was the action of an overzealous ad hoc staff member who failed to adhere to the Board’s established guidelines regarding candidates’ religious attire.”

The board stressed that the action did not reflect its policies and insisted that it respects the religious beliefs and customs of all Nigerians.
JAMB also said the matter had been addressed promptly.

It assured candidates across the country that their right to religious expression, including dressing in line with their faith, remains protected under its policy.

“We assure all candidates, regardless of faith, that their rights to religious expression including dressing remain a cornerstone of our policy,” the statement added.

To prevent a repeat of the incident, the board said all ad hoc officials have been further briefed and reminded of the approved screening procedures for candidates at all centres.

The statement followed reports that some Muslim female candidates at Esther Oshikoya CBT Centre in Ibadan were allegedly asked to remove their hijab before being allowed into the examination hall during the ongoing UTME exercise.

The UTME is the annual entrance examination for admission into tertiary institutions in Nigeria, with thousands of candidates currently sitting for this year’s exercise nationwide.