JAMB Cancels Registrations of 817 UTME Candidates Over False Biometric Fingerprints

The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) has announced the cancellation of 817 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) registrations in 2023.

Investors King gathered that the cancelled UTME registrations were as a result of false biometric fingerprints detected in the candidates’ registrations.

The JAMB Registrar, Prof. Is-haq Oloyede however, stated that the 817 persons whose registrations were invalidated would be given another opportunity to re-register for the examination while the centres will bear the new cost of registrations.

Prof. Oloyede, who spoke after separate meetings with stakeholders said, it was observed that some registration officers in about 178 Computer Based Test (CBT) centres used their fingerprints to complete the registration process instead of the candidates’ fingerprints which led to the registration cancellation. 

While the JAMB boss explained that some UTME candidates were naive due to the device used hence the officers using their fingerprints, he also posited that some did that intentionally for malpractice and impersonation but such cases were difficult to decipher.

His words, “For the students who allowed other people to add their fingers to their registration procedure. We found that some of them were only naive, because you will hear them saying my finger was hot, and the man added his own. And you allowed him to add his own? 

“Some of them did it deliberately for impersonation but we can’t identify those who are genuine from those who are not genuine. We will cancel all the registrations and we will ask them to re-register.

“The centres involved, we have just met with them, and they all confessed. Nobody is disputing it, even students that were telling lies, they know we have the technology that won’t allow any lie to be accommodated. On their own, the CBT owners suggested the solution. We will cancel the registrations of those people concerned and we will send a message to them to go back to the very centres  where they were registered and the CBT centres will pay to the board the cost of registration of the candidates.”

The JAMB Registrar warned candidates against allowing the capture of another person’s fingerprints during their registration process, noting that the device will detect any strange fingerprint added.

Giving an update on the recent suspension of five CBT centres who were caught selling UTME registration pins above JAMB fixed price, Prof. Oloyede said the suspension has been lifted from four of the five centers after explanations and apologies were tendered.

He added that the erred CBT centres will refund the excess amount to the board who will forward it to the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) to decide on what the money will be used for, as candidates had been warned severally not to pay above the approved pin price.