The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) has explained why forms for 2017 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) are not yet on sale.
The Registrar, Prof. Ishaq Oloyede, said the delay was due to issues the board had with sale of scratch cards.
He said candidates used to buy scratch cards to access the forms online and that it had been abused thoroughly.
“What we want to do is for students to pay directly to government coffers and we are working out the process of doing so to avoid the type of abuse that it has been subjected to,” he told Daily Trust.
“So, we want to sell directly and to make sure that candidates pay into TSA account. We have cases of students saying their scratch cards got burnt, others saying their scratch cards were swallowed by snakes or lost in an accident.
“I believe my predecessor did his best. Shortly before I came, he dismissed 12 staff on issues relating to the sale of scratch cards or e-facility cards as we called it. I need to build on it by cancelling the whole process.
“Another reason is that we do not want our students to suffer as a result of clash in timetable. Students have to take NECO, WAEC and NABTEB exams. That is why we held meetings with examination bodies and agreed to realign our timetable. There is no time yet for the sale of forms.
“Fraudsters thought we are going to sell scratch cards and they have started selling fake forms and we are now arresting them. We have to thank the security agencies, particularly the NSCDC.
“Between August last year and now, not less than four people have been convicted by courts and have been sentenced either as students or as fake business men. So that is the kind of signal we want to send.”
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