Illegal Admission: JAMB identifies 3,000 fake graduates

The Joint Admissions and Matriculations Board has discovered a significant fraud, which has exposed 3,000 individuals who falsely claimed to be graduates without ever having attended a university.

The board condemned the ongoing practice of illicit admissions by certain institutions, describing it as a disgrace to the educational landscape of the country.

Professor Ishaq Oloyede, the Registrar of the board, revealed this information in a report published in the board’s official bulletin, a copy of which was obtained by our correspondent in Abuja.

According to the bulletin, Oloyede disclosed this during a meeting with the leadership of the Committee of Pro-Chancellors of State Universities.

“Some ‘graduates’ had never entered the four walls of a university owing to the endemic corruption in the system but the board had documented over 3,000 of such cases.

“Illegal admission of candidates into tertiary institutions in the country is an embarrassment and a disservice to the nation,” the bulletin read.

The issue of illegal admissions has over the years been at the forefront of JAMB’s priorities.

The House of Representatives Committee on Basic Education, in December 2023, ordered the JAMB to present a list of tertiary institutions that had conducted irregular and illegal admissions.

Earlier, the examination body warned candidates not to accept admissions from institutions that do not require full academic participation, emphasizing the value of genuine academic achievement.

In a statement titled ‘Cessation of Illegal/Irregular Admission’, JAMB reaffirmed that all admission applications for first degrees, national diplomas, national innovation diplomas, and Nigeria certificates in education must be strictly processed through JAMB.