JAMB nullifies admissions offered by UniAbuja, others

The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board yesterday described as illegitimate, admissions being offered by the University of Abuja and few others.

The JAMB alleged that the admissions were being offered outside the Central Admissions Processing System (CAPS).

Head, Public Affairs and Protocols of JAMB, Fabian Benjamin, in a statement, said the universities had been reported to be issuing admission letters to candidates without recourse to the board.

The JAMB had instituted CAPS in 2017 as an automated platform designed to ensure that admissions are transparently done to protect the interest of all Nigerians desirous of tertiary education.

Benjamin said such admissions, neither proposed, approved nor accepted on the CAPS were null and void.

According to him, asking hapless candidates to pay acceptance fees for such admissions that had not been processed through CAPS amounts to illegality.

“Consequently, such admissions are illegal, unacceptable and offensive to extant rules and regulations guiding admissions to tertiary institutions in Nigeria as approved by the Federal Ministry of Education and provided on CAPS.

“By implication, any candidate who has not accepted and printed his/her admissions letter on CAPS should not pay any acceptance fee as any admission done outside CAPS is an illegitimate admission that would not be sanctioned by the Board.”

He said admission guidelines stipulate that institutions recommend qualified candidates through CAPS in accordance with laid-down criteria to the Board for approval. As such, any such admission not approved by the Board is an exercise in futility.

He said any institution violating this well-intentioned guidelines had much to hide and the JAMB would not shy away from its responsibility of ensuring compliance to laiddown admission guidelines.

“Candidates are advised, in their own interest, not to accept such admissions done outside the purview of JAMB nor pay any acceptance fee as such admissions will never be allowed to stand,” he added.

When contacted, the spokesman of the UniAbuja, Habib Yakoob, said the university followed due process in admissions.