The Minister of Education, Dr. Tunji Alausa, has issued a stern directive to key examination bodies, instructing them to take decisive action against individuals and institutions involved in examination malpractice.
In a letter dated May 27, 2025, addressed to the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB), West African Examinations Council (WAEC), National Examinations Council (NECO), and the National Business and Technical Examinations Board (NABTEB), Dr. Alausa directed the immediate blacklisting of any Computer-Based Test (CBT) centres and candidates found guilty of fraudulent examination practices.
The minister’s directive comes in the wake of what he described as “mind-boggling sharp practices” uncovered during the 2025 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME).
He emphasised that any school or CBT centre found to be functioning as a “miracle centre” or engaged in malpractice should be derecognised for a period to be determined by the respective examination body.
Furthermore, Dr. Alausa recommended a unified disciplinary approach among the examination bodies. “If any school or CBT centre is derecognised by one examination body, other sister bodies should follow suit and impose the same duration of derecognition. This concurrent sanction will send a strong warning to operators of such centres,” he said.
He also called for severe penalties against individual candidates involved in malpractice. According to the directive, any student found guilty should be banned from taking any external examinations conducted by WAEC, NECO, NABTEB, or similar bodies for a minimum of three years.
The enforcement of this ban, he said, should be anchored on the National Identification Number (NIN) system. “Such stringent measures will serve as a deterrent to other students and parents,” the minister added.
Dr. Alausa pointed out that his directive is in line with existing legislation, specifically citing Section 16(2) of the Examination Malpractices Act. The Act empowers examination bodies to share the identities of offenders—including candidates, schools, officials, and centres—with sister bodies, allowing them to impose corresponding sanctions.
This move comes after JAMB reported significant irregularities following the release of the 2025 UTME resit results. JAMB Registrar, Prof. Ishaq Oloyede, disclosed that the examination was marred by sophisticated malpractice schemes.
“While some Nigerians focus on conspiracy theories and spreading hatred, the future of our country is being jeopardised by advanced levels of digitised fraud,” he stated.
Prof. Oloyede detailed several high-level malpractices that were discovered during investigations. These include:
Hacking of CBT centre networks by school proprietors in collusion with accredited centres, enabling remote control of candidates’ computers and submission of answers to local servers.
AI-enabled photo manipulation, where impersonators—many of whom are current university undergraduates—were digitally blended into candidates’ photographs.
Fingerprint collusion, involving the use of multiple individuals’ fingerprints for a single candidate’s registration.
Extension of Local Area Networks (LAN) from CBT centres to secret “strong rooms,” allowing off-site manipulation of exam data.
Intentional disruption of sitting arrangements, to facilitate pairing of candidates with hired mercenaries who had registered solely to gain access to exam halls.
These acts, he said, led to the withdrawal of some candidates’ results and the arrest of several individuals across the country. “Over 3,000 candidates nationwide have been identified either as accomplices or beneficiaries of this massive fraud. As investigations continue, any candidate found culpable will have their results withdrawn, regardless of whether those results have already been released,” he affirmed.
The minister expressed confidence that the new measures will restore credibility to Nigeria’s examination system and protect the integrity of future assessments.