Some candidates, who sat for day one of the 2018 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examinations, UTME, on Saturday commended the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board, JAMB, even as few panicked due to their unfamiliarity with the use of computers.
JAMB had stated that candidates participating in the UTME should not be complaining of not knowing their examination centres when they have not gone to print their slip.
The proprietor of Lagooz Schools Agege, Lagos, Abayomi Otubela, whose school serves as one of the UTME centres, announced this to the parents of the candidates at the waiting lodge in the centre.
Otubela said some candidates had difficulties navigating through the computers, which made them to panic.
“Some of our children are fidgeting because they are not familiar with the use of computers.
“Some of them said they cannot even navigate to move to the next subject, so we had to put them through the process before the examination started,” he said.
He advised parents to inform those, who had not written the examination, to get familiar with the use of computers and the JAMB software.
“For those of you, who have people that haven’t written, let them get familiar with the use of computer and JAMB software.
“That was why JAMB conducted the mock examination so that they can familiarise themselves with the software.’’
He also advised parents to encourage their children to prepare well academically in order to gain admission into the schools of their choice.
Meanwhile, some candidates sitting for the ongoing Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examinations, UTME, in some centres in Lagos, Benin and Abuja have commended the JAMB as CBT proceeds smoothly in most centres.
NAN reports that the examination commenced on Friday across the country, with computer Based Test, CBT.
A cross section of the candidates writing the test at Connection Computer Centre, Lagos, commended JAMB for its proper organisation.
Kehinde Adenuga said the organisation of the examination was convenient for applicants.
“The process of registration and allocation has been convenient, as everything is done online.
“The first batch started by 7a.m, and I will be in the next batch to write by 9 a.m. I can only pray for the best,” he said.
Chime Lucky, another candidate, expressed hope for success in the test.
“I wrote JAMB in 2017 but I didn’t do too well, I hope and pray that I am able to secure admission this year,” she said.
A parent, Obinna Ume, who brought his ward to write the test, also commended the arrangement.
“There is no rowdiness and the candidates are expected to have basic knowledge of computer to write the test.
“This is commendable and it will go a long way to encourage computer literacy among students,” he said.
Supervisor for the examination centre, Akinyele Ariyo, assured that the test was foolproof against manipulation.
“The examinations we are conducting are well organised and protected against malpractices.
“The questions are computer based and cannot be leaked by anybody, and the centres are monitored with security cameras connected to a central server ” he said.
Ariyo said that his centre accommodated 250 candidates for each batch, with three batches in a day.
Also, some 2018 UTME candidates in Benin on Saturday tasked JAMB to be time cautious.
One of the candidates, Endurance Abang, told NAN that the exams was schedule for 7a.m but could not start until 8.a.m.
Abang said that some of the candidates travelled early to their various centres without food only to start waiting for JAMB officials.
He however, called on JAMB to make mock examinations compulsory for all the candidates that enrolled for the exam, adding that it would enable them to familiarise with computers and other back-ups equipment used at the exam centres.
Another candidate, Solomon Osarodion, lauded JAMB for the smooth conduct of the examination, however, warned JAMB for not commencing examination early enough as slated.
Osarodion said that JAMB should ensure proper monitoring of all the facilities used during the exams as he said that some of the computers are outdated.
A centre administrator, Daniel Egeonu, said that JAMB has a way of monitoring all its accredited centre before the commencement of each exams, adding that JAMB would not accredited any centre without meeting its requirements.
Egeonu, however, blamed late commencement of exams on the part of candidates not arriving centres early enough.
Also an Inspector on Call, IC, Idowu Odufoye, from the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, NSCDC, told NAN that they recorded a hitch-free screening at the centre.
“We carried out the screening in four different stages and there was no problem with the candidates.
“They complied, obeyed instructions and none of them were caught with any incriminating material, Odufoye said.
According to a JAMB official, Moshood Momoh, no issue was encountered during the examination and the candidates behaved very well and were orderly.
NAN reports that out of 250 candidates registered for the first day at the centre, only one candidate was absent.
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