JAMB Boss Oloyede Reveals The Painful Experience He Can Never Forget

Immediate past Registrar of the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB), Prof. Ishaq Oloyede, has described parents’ involvement in examination malpractice as the most heartbreaking aspect of his decade-long leadership of the examination body.

Oloyede made the remark on Sunday during an appearance on THISDAY Live on Arise Television, just days after officially handing over the leadership of JAMB to his successor, Prof. Segun Aina.

The former registrar, who completed two terms in office, formally transferred the administration of the board to Aina on Friday.

Reflecting on his 10-year tenure, Oloyede said he was deeply troubled by the extent to which some parents orchestrated examination malpractice on behalf of their children, warning that such actions expose young people to criminal behaviour from an early age.

According to him, candidates are often not the main culprits, as many are pushed into malpractice by their parents.

“The most painful period of my experience in JAMB has to do with the level of involvement of parents in the organisation of examination malpractice.

“They are introducing their wards and children to the world of crime. I think most of the candidates are not problematic. They are not the problem. The problem is the parents.

“Every time I was confronted with the reality of what parents are doing, most of the time, I became very emotional about it.

“Most of the time, I feel that how on earth will people hate themselves and their futures to this level. Even if you have deficiency, you won’t want to pass the deficiency to the next generation,” he said.

Despite the challenge, Oloyede described his years at JAMB as fulfilling, noting that confronting parents over examination malpractice remained the lowest point of his administration.

He also expressed confidence in the ability of the new registrar, Prof. Segun Aina, to further improve the conduct of the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) through expanded use of technology.

Oloyede said Aina’s background in computer engineering would enable him to build on the digital innovations introduced during his tenure and further strengthen the examination process.