Muslim Media Watch Group of Nigeria, MMWGN, has decried the resolution of the House of Representatives to probe the Joint Matriculation and Examination Board, JAMB over alleged extortion of candidates through imposition of multiple processing and administrative fees, describing the idea as ill-conceived and in bad faith.
According to the watch group, through its Ogun State Coordinator, Alh Kamaldeen Akintunde, the adoption of the resolution, following a motion by Rep Serginus Ogun, Edo Federal Constituency, is an attempt to rubbish the progress and the feat attained by the present headship of the federal government agency.
The present JAMB under the watch of Prof. Is-haq Oloyede has carved a niche for itself by an overhaul of the entire system, thus restoring overwhelming confidence and trust in the management of the Universal Tertiary and Matriculation Examinations, UTME.
JAMB’s incorruptible Registrar and CEO has not only sanitized the agency by ensuring decorum and application of ‘due process’ in its activities, he has also made the agency a reputable federal government parastatal company and of reference. This exemplariness, according to MMWGN, must have earned him his second term appointment as Registrar if the body by President Muhammadu Buhari.
The group acknowledged the mandatory oversight function of NASS provided in Section 88(1) and (2) of the country’s constitution, empowering NASS to conduct investigation into the activities of any authority executing or administering laws.
MMWGN, however, enjoined the Green Chamber to eschew prejudice and bias in executing the house’s resolution and avoid creating an impression, suggestive of casting aspersions on the good work of the agency under the watch of the present JAMB leadership.
An argument by the lawmaker, Rep Serginus Ogun that JAMB by its establishment is an examination conducting body and not a revenue-generating organ of government could be likened to “calling a dog a bad name in order to hang it”.
Meanwhile, the Media Watch Group has implored the federal government and the striking Universities’ teaching and non-teaching staff under the aegis of ASUU and NASU to resolve the impasse and stop putting education in jeopardy.
It called on the duo to shift grounds, charging both ASUU and NASU to display understanding with government in the face of the worsening economic downturn, just as it called for magnanimity on the part of the federal government as well.
MMWGN enjoined the nation’s leaders and stakeholders in the education sector to wade into the imbroglio and reconcile the government and its employees in the overall interest of national development.
The group charged both the government and the university staffers to allow the spirit of the ongoing Christian Lenten season and Muslims Ramadan fast, as adherents of both faiths, to touch their hearts and strike a balance, calling on both to explore more dialogues and a display of maturity as a viable option to address the recurring impasse.
Meanwhile, MMWG has applauded the management of JAMB for the hitch-free conduct of its 2022 mock UTME held in its 757 CBT centres throughout the country. It expressed implicit confidence in the management to replicate the success in the main exams holding from 6th -16th May and sustain its enviable performance.
The Watch Group, however, charged stakeholders, especially CBT Centres and students who must have tested their abilities with the mock to comport themselves
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