Toba Owojaiye reporting
In the month July 2023, a concerning situation unfolded involving Miss Nmesoma Ejikeme and her JAMB (Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board) result, which raised serious questions about the integrity of our national institutions.
Nmesoma had taken her 2023 JAMB exam at the Computer-Based Testing (CBT) Center in Obosi, affiliated with Osita Chidoka’s foundation. Worried friends reached out to Chidoka, expressing doubts about the authenticity of Nmesoma’s result, which indicated the Thomas Chidoka Center as her examination venue. However, Chidoka assured them that the issue did not stem from the examination center itself.
Upon closer inspection, two prominent red flags came to light. Firstly, it was discovered that the center’s name had been changed since 2021. While the correct name displayed on the JAMB portal and Main Examination Slip was Nkemefuna Foundation (Thomas Chidoka Center for Human Development), Nmesoma’s result only mentioned Thomas Chidoka, omitting the Nkemefuna Foundation. This inconsistency raised suspicions regarding the genuineness of her result.
The second red flag emerged from the result template. A brief review of other candidates who had taken the recent examination at the Obosi center revealed a different result slip template. Genuine result slips typically included the candidate’s passport picture, JAMB watermarks, and did not mention the examination center’s name.
Given these discrepancies, Chidoka chose to give Nmesoma the benefit of the doubt, awaiting an explanation regarding the origin of her result, which clearly did not match the official JAMB template used in 2023. It became evident that the result was fraudulent.
Chidoka, having developed trust in the integrity of the JAMB online examination platform through prior experience, felt compelled to address the underlying issue at hand – the prevailing lack of trust in our national institutions.
The incident had triggered a frenzy on social media and unwarranted criticism of JAMB. Moreover, the introduction of an ethnic slant further exacerbated the situation, reflecting the deep-rooted distrust that had permeated our society over the past eight years, leading to a troubling descent along national fault lines. The ethnicization of the matter was a saddening and disappointing development.
Commending JAMB for their swift and resolute defense of their integrity, Chidoka acknowledged the institution’s forceful response. JAMB provided compelling evidence, including the USSD communication between Nmesoma’s phone and their servers, complete with timestamps.
Mr. Fabian Benjamin, the JAMB spokesperson, played a crucial role in explaining the system’s operation and the security measures employed for their result portal. He even encouraged anyone to verify the information with Nmesoma’s network provider, AIRTEL. JAMB’s transparency in this regard was both compelling and disarming.
Professor Oloyede, the JAMB Registrar, issued statements based on factual information, staunchly defending the integrity of this esteemed Nigerian institution. He highlighted the potential catastrophic consequences for Nigeria’s educational and CBT systems if JAMB were to fail in upholding its integrity. Chidoka was impressed by JAMB’s reaction and responsiveness, believing that their approach should serve as a minimum benchmark for other government agencies.
He suggested that universities should examine this saga and develop case studies, enabling other institutions to navigate social media and information management amidst relentless attacks.