The Joint Admission and Matriculation Board (JAMB) has condemned a Lagos-based Computer Based Test (CBT) centre for stopping hijab-wearing candidates from writing the ongoing Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME).
Specifically, the examination body insisted that it has no policy barring candidates from sporting religious paraphernalia peculiar to their religious persuasions during its exams.
JAMB spokesperson, Dr Fabian Benjamin stated this in a statement on Sunday.
Dr Benjamin who condemned the action of the CBT centre, noted that ‘accredited partners’ involved have been sanctioned, assuring that the matter would be properly investigated to prevent a reoccurrence.
Benjamin said the “unfortunate incident at the Bafuto Institute, Ile-Iwe Bus Stop, Ejigbo, Lagos, where it was reported by Muslim News of Sunday, 21st April, 2024, and other platforms, that a candidate donning hijab was asked to remove her headcover during the accreditation process before being allowed into the examination hall.
“The Board deeply regretted the incident and, on investigation discovered, that this particular incident or others in the past, is not linked to any of its examination guidelines but rather a product of the misplaced priority of some of the Board’s accredited partners or officials who claimed ignorance of the Board’s guidelines on accreditation, which ensures that all candidates are screened allowing only female officials to screen female candidates before allowing them to gain entrance into the hall.
“This situation was instantly addressed by a senior official of the Board at the centre and the candidate in question allowed in after the usual checks with her hijab.
“However, since ignorance of the law is not an excuse, the officials have been appropriately sanctioned to serve as a deterrent to others, who might wish to toe the same line going forward.”
The exercise which commenced on April 19, is expected to end on April 29, even as Dr Benjamin revealed that over 1.2million of the 1.9million candidates would have successfully taken the examination by Monday, 22nd April, 2024.