JAMB sanctions parents/guardians over alleged distractions to candidates, exam centres

*It has been discovered that parents/guardians are always a distraction to both candidates and the exam centres … congesting the halls by not following the COVID-19 protocols ─ Prof. Is’haq Oloyede, Registrar of Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board

Emmanuel Akosile | ConsumerConnect

In an attempt to stop pushing the education of children and wards faster than necessary, besides causing needless distractions to candidates, the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) has directed all Computer-Based Training (CBT) Centres to not allow parents/guardians into the registration halls across Nigeria again.

Hassan Lawal, JAMB Spokesman in Ilorin Office of the Board in a statement, said Prof. Is’haq Oloyede, Registrar of JAMB, noted the decision was made after inspecting some of the registration centres in Kwara State, which were discovered to be overcrowded.

The statement noted that “the Registrar said it has been discovered that the parents/guardians are always a distraction to both candidates and the centres, and at the same time, congesting the halls by not following the COVID-19 protocols.”

Oloyede also advised parents/guardians to stop pushing the education of their wards faster than necessary in connection with their intellectual development.

The Registrar stated: “For example, a 14 or 15-year-old is not mature enough to undergo the process of registration and university pressure, and are vulnerable to exploitation by scammers out there.”

The Board urged States’ Ministries of Education and other relevant stakeholders saddled with the responsibility of enrollment of students into secondary schools to always ascertain the students’ true age before admittance into secondary schools.