The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) has announced that an Anambra state candidate, Christian Chinedu Okeke, with 375, has emerged as the best candidate in the 2025 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME).

Ayuba Simon-Peter John from Gombe State with 374 emerged first runner-up, while about five candidates, led by Jimoh Abdulmalik Olayinka with 373 from Kwara State, emerged second runner-up.

JAMB Registrar, Prof. Ishaq Oloyede, announced the list at the 2025 Policy Meeting on Admissions into Tertiary Institutions and the 5th edition of the National Tertiary Admissions and Performance-Merit Award (NATAP-M).

Oloyede, however, stated that the best candidate has an admission fraud-related challenge that might affect him in the future.

He said that in the course of final checks before the final decision on the best candidate, it was discovered that the best candidate, Christian Chinedu Okeke, was already a student studying Medicine at the University of Nigeria (UNN), Nsukka.

“I contacted the Vice-Chancellor, and he stated that the student was in the Faculty of Medicine, but was recently expelled because of poor academic performance.

“I asked the VC to put the response in writing. But surprisingly, the VC failed to add all he said to me in the letter in response to my request as previously discussed on the phone.

“However, we have contacted the Medical and Dental Council of Nigeria (MDCN) and other relevant agencies about the development, and we asked that the student should not be indexed for any reason,” he said. (Daily Sun)

•JAMB REGISTRAR, Prof. Is-haq Oloyede at the Kogo CBT Centre in Bwari Area Council of FCT, monitoring the 2024 UTME