JAMB e-PINs: Pastor, wife get 3-year imprisonment for infractions

Isola Moses

For exploiting examination candidates, the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board JAMB has secured conviction of four persons for selling the e-PIN for the 2020 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) above the stipulated cost of N4, 700.

ConsumerConnect learnt that a Magistrate Court sitting in Lafia, Nasarawa State, Monday, January 27, convicted Mr. Ujaku Emem Samuel, a pastor of one of the new generation churches, and his wife, Mrs. Peace; Mr. Opulani Sunupe and Mr. Umar Musa Sa’adu.

In a statement by JAMB’s Head of Information, the four persons pleaded guilty to the offence.

They were sentenced to three years in prison each.

Recall that the Federal Government Nigeria had pegged the sale of 2020 UTME/DE application documents at N3, 500, reading text for N500 and N700 for Computer-Based Test (CBT) centres, totalling N4, 700.

“No fewer than four persons, who are agents of accredited sale outlets arrested by officers of NSCDC, Nasarawa State Command, for selling the ongoing 2020 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) and Direct Entry (DE) application documents above the prescribed price of N4,000 have been sentenced to three years in prison each.

“Before the commencement of the sale of 2020, UTME/DE application documents on 13th January, 2020, the sale outlets and their agents were adequately briefed by the Board on the cost and procedures for vending the ePINs.

The price of the e-PINs was fixed at N3,500 while that of the Reading Text was N500 totalling N4,000,” the statement  said.

According to JAMB, “a commission of N210 from the N3,500 due to the Board is given to the sale outlets as a commission on each PIN sold to motivate them as well as dissuade them from exploiting candidates.

“It would be recalled that the Federal Government, in a bid to lessen the burden on parents, had directed that the UTME application documents be sold at N3500 down from N5000 charged earlier.”

The examination body noted that “it is rather unfortunate that in spite of all the warnings and appeals as well as the offer of a fat commission by the Board, some sale agents still deemed it fit to test the resolve of the Board and the Federal Government by doing the contrary.

“This conviction is only the first in the series of ongoing prosecution of cases in several courts of law across the country, and, as such, many more convictions are being expected in due course.

“All sale outlets and their agents charged with the vending of the e-PINs are hereby warned, in their own interest, to desist from engaging in sharp practices or face the consequences.

“Anyone who sells the e-PINs above the regulated price would certainly, be arrested and prosecuted as each ePIN comes with a unique identifier for ease of tracking.”

While warning exam candidates also to desist from paying more than the prescribed price, JAMB also informs the general public that “it welcomes credible and actionable reports of persons or centres exploiting candidates by selling above the regulated price.”