UTME 2024: JAMB imposes sanctions on officials for harassing hijab-wearing candidate

The management of the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) has sanctioned some of its officials for asking a candidate wearing a hijab to remove her head covering during the accreditation process before being allowed into the examination hall for the ongoing Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME).

The Council said its attention was drawn on Sunday through a news report to the unfortunate incident that occurred at the Bafuto Institute, Ile-Iwe Bus Stand, Ejigbo, Lagos, examination centre.

JAMB Public Communication Advisor, Dr. Fabian Benjamin, who conveyed this in a statement in Abuja on Sunday, said the board deeply regretted the incident as the action was not in line with the board’s guidelines on the accreditation of candidates for the exam.

The statement read in part: “The attention of the board was drawn to an unfortunate incident at Bafuto Institute, Ile-Iwe Bus Stand, Ejigbo, Lagos, where it was reported by Muslim News of Sunday, April 21, 2024, and other platforms. , that during the accreditation process, a candidate wearing a hijab was asked to remove her head covering before being allowed into the examination hall.

“The Council deeply regretted the incident and investigation revealed that this particular incident, or other past incidents, is not related to any of the investigation guidelines, but rather is a product of the misplaced priority of some of the accredited partners or officials of the Council. who claimed they were unaware of the Council’s guidelines on accreditation, which ensures that all candidates are screened, allowing only female officers to screen female candidates before being allowed into the venue.

“This situation was immediately addressed by a senior official of the center’s administration and the candidate in question was allowed in after the usual checks with her hijab.

“However, since ignorance of the law is no excuse, the officials have been suitably sanctioned to serve as a deterrent to others, who may want to follow the same line in the future.

“It is worth noting that the Board, as a national institution, has no policy that prohibits candidates from expressing themselves with the religious paraphernalia inherent in their religious beliefs, as these are the facts of everyday life in Nigeria, with which everyone is now familiar should have been.

“Furthermore, the Council assures the general public that this matter will be properly investigated, as it has done in previous incidents, to prevent recurrence and that nothing will be swept under the carpet.

“The board is committed to fulfilling its statutory role of ensuring that suitably qualified candidates are selected for admission into the country’s tertiary institutions and will not allow anything or anyone to distract it from the pursuit of this noble goal “, the board said.

Meanwhile, the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board has revealed that the conduct of the 2024 UTME, which commenced on Friday, April 19, was seamless as over 1.2 million candidates would have successfully sat the exam on Monday, April 22, 2024.