By Kolawole Ojebisi
The registrar of the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board, (JAMB), Ishaq Oloyede, has stated the reason he broke down in tears after realizing that errors marred the conduct of the 2025 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination.
Oloyede said he decided to take responsibility for the errors not because he failed, stressing that his deep understanding of leadership informed his action.
The JAMB registrar stated this on Wednesday during a stakeholders’ meeting in Abuja,
“I take responsibility, not because I failed, but because that’s leadership.”
Addressing the criticisms and conspiracy theories trailing the examination process, Oloyede firmly rejected claims of ethnic bias or administrative incompetence.
“I didn’t even realise people viewed issues around me through ethnic lenses. We must rise above such profiling.” he added.
Meanwhile, the examination board has announced a fresh round of mop-up examinations to accommodate the over 5.6 per cent of candidates who missed the 2025 UTME.
Oloyede maintained that initiative will cover all affected candidates, regardless of the reason for their absence.
He said, “This time, we are creating a new mop-up. Even those who missed the earlier exam due to absence will get another opportunity.
“It’s not extraordinary. In any serious system, when students miss an exam, they’re allowed to make up—provided there’s no abuse.”
He emphasised that the UTME is a placement test, not a measure of intelligence or academic potential. “Its purpose is to rank candidates for limited admission slots, not to test how smart someone is,” he clarified.
Oloyede als praised both candidates and staff for their resilience amid logistical difficulties.
“We had limited space. We knew if we wasted more time grieving the challenges, students would lose their opportunity,” he said.
According to JAMB, the special mop-up exam will be scheduled soon.
