The African Centre for Human Advancement and Resource Support (CHARS-Africa) has condemned the recent failure in this year’s Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) examination, which affected nearly 380,000 candidates.
It described the incident as a national crisis with alarming and blatant manifestation of institutional carelessness.
The group noted that the explanations offered by the examination body following the emotional and psychological trauma and even death suffered by some students were unacceptable.
“JAMB’s excuse for this monumental failure is unacceptable, given their ample time and resources to prepare for this critical examination.
“Trust building in institutional systems like JAMB is paramount, especially concerning our youths. In light of current economic challenges, CHARS-Africa Executive Director, Amaka Bianchi, demanded adequate compensation for trauma, financial loss, and inconvenience suffered by affected candidates, logistical support for candidates traveling long distances to retake the examination, and provision of educational materials, including data, required for the said rescheduled examination, as well as accountability and prosecution of personnel responsible for this failure to restore trust and serve as a deterrent.
Bianchi said the demand for compensation was based on the existing national legal framework as enshrined in the constitution.
“Our demands are based on Section 18 of the Constitution, which guarantees the right to education and dignity. Section 44 of the Constitution emphasises protecting citizens’ right to fair hearing and administrative justice; the JAMB Act mandates fair, transparent, and efficient conduct of entrance examinations and the Consumer Protection Laws Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Act (FCCPA) 2018, provides for consumer complaints, redress, and investigation,” Bianchi said.
Credit: The Sun