Lawyer, group fault JAMB for conducting exams for police, agencies

A conerned body has faulted the Joint Matriculation and Examination Board (JAMB) for allegedly going beyond its scope and conducting examinations for other agencies of government.

Citing the provisions of section 5(1)(a) and (2) of the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board act Chapter 193 laws of the Federation of Nigeria which empowers JAMB to conduct examinations for only educational institutions, the body insisted that JAMB has no right to conduct computer based screening examinations for non educational institutions, including the Nigerian Police Force and the Federal Road Safety Commission (FRSC).

“By virtue of the above- mentioned section, the Joint Admission and Matriculation Board does not have the legal authority to conduct screening examinations for institutions and organisations other than tertiary institutions and by their actions have thus contravened the said section.

JAMB had at various times conducted screening examinations for the Nigeria Police Force (NPF), Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) as well as MTN foundation scholarship programme.

The body maintained that the action clearly contravened the laws establishing the board and called on the government to call JAMB to order.

In the same vein, a legal practitioner, Geoffey Oparaji has written to the registrar, Prof. Ishaq Oloyede asking him to stop violating the laws guiding the establishment of the organisation.

The letter read in part: “I humbly refer you to the provisions of section 5(1)(a) and (2) of the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board, Act that provides thus:
Section 5(1)(a) stated, “Notwithstanding the provisions of any other enactment, the Board shall be responsible for the general control of the conduct of matriculation examinations for admissions into all universities, polytechnics, (by whatever name called in Nigeria.

‘”For the avoidance of doubt, the board shall be responsible for determining matriculation requirements and conducting examination leading to undergraduate admissions and also for admission to national diploma and the Nigeria certificate in education courses but shall not be responsible for examinations or any other selective process for post-graduate courses and any other courses offered by the tertiary institutions.”

The lawyer argued that the above provisions restricted JAMB only to conducting examinations listed in the said act. He, therefore, accused the body of acting with total disregard for its enabling law.

“I specifically refer you to the board’s involvement in the Nigeria Police recruitment of staff and personnel. That is, selection and conducting test examinations.

Also the advert in some of the nation’s dailies indicating the board’s willingness and preparedness to bid for contracts from individuals, public, corporate bodies, governments and agencies for recruitment of staff, conduct aptitude tests and other related and allied services and activities. This deviation amounted to “total and gross breach” of JAMB’s enabling act.”