Mixed reactions trails Scrapping of Post-UTME

Stakeholders and candidates have expressed divergent views on the decision of the Federal Government to stop the conduct of Post-Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (Post-UTME).

Speaking to Daily Times in separate interviews, they stressed that the advent of the exam was to check poor quality of candidates and eliminate fraud in the admission process, adding that the Federal Government decision would further compound the problem in the admission process.

While others were of the views that the exam has not solved the problem it was created for but rather helped in exploitation of candidates.

Reacting, Chairman, Parents-Teachers Association (PTA) of Federal Government College (FGC) Ijanikin-Lagos, Barrister Aina Emmanuel, said scraping post-UTME would add further problems to the admission process, adding that post-UTME has helped to sanitise the education sector.

He described the decision to scrap the exam as hasty, noting that relevant stakeholders should have been consulted before it was taken.

He said: “It is a wrong decision, we all know the reason why post-UTME was started. They should look at this, if there is any if need be for review, relevant stakeholders should be consulted. It would not do us any good. I’m not doubting the credibility of JAMB exam, but we have seen what is happening all these years.

However, the proprietor of Eduland School, Egbeda, Lagos, Mrs wura Ayandosu, noted that it was obvious that post-UTME has not eliminated irregularities in the admission process, adding that the current system over-laboured the candidates, who according to her, have to write several exams before gaining admission to tertiary institution.

She said: “I don’t think post-UTME has eliminated the problems, rather we all know these officials favour their children and carry out other irregularities through this process. Why subject the candidates to several exams which over-labour them and at the end we may not get the best from them.

“I believe JAMB has doing well over the years, and if need be let’s strengthen JAMB to perform efficiently. They introduced Post-UTME because the people do not have confidence in anything that is not done by them”.

Also speaking, an Educationist and subject counsellor, Akanimoh Uwenedimo, called for caution, wondering what criteria would be adopted in admitting students by tertiary institutions.

He lamented that present students are unwilling to read, adding that the Post-UTME exam was being used in grading the candidates and admitting the best.

He said: “The candidates are not ready to read and all of them want to study medicine. The post-UTME did help to add up their WAEC and JAMB performance. I don’t know what criteria they would use now; it is just confusion”.

However, most candidates were in support the decision to scrap Post-UTME by the Federal Government, stressing that there was never a need for post-UTME, especially since the JAMB exam has become Computer Based Test (CBT).

A candidate, Olabisi Oshunkeye, wondered why candidates would be subjected to several exams and exploited before gaining admission into tertiary institutions in the country, adding that since JAMB exam’s credibility had been restored through the conduct of its exam on CBT, there was no need for Post-UTME again.

She said: “We all know that these schools exploit candidates. Even when they know they would not admit more than 5,000, they call 50,000 candidates to write the exam and they in turn make huge profit.

“And in schools, you don’t even see your result after wasting transport and time to travel and write the exam. Since JAMB is now CBT, I don’t think there is need for Post-UTME exam again.”