The 2023 presidential candidate of the Labour Party, Peter Obi, has called on the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) to adopt a more compassionate approach in handling students’ academic needs, accusing the body of indirectly forcing many to travel long distances and pay exorbitant fees to change their course or institution choices.

In a statement on X on Friday, Obi recounted how, while passing through Amawbia in Anambra State recently, he saw a large crowd of students gathered outside the JAMB office, with some even perched on the fence.

According to him, he stopped to speak with some of them, who explained that they were there to make changes to their course or institution choices.

He said he was surprised because such services are usually processed at JAMB-designated CBT centres, but the students told him most centres had stopped offering the service.

Obi said his investigation revealed that, of the 28 JAMB-approved centres in Anambra, 17 had been blacklisted, with many of them not informed of the specific reasons beyond the vague explanation that they were “under investigation.”

According to him, the development has forced students to travel from remote parts of the state to the JAMB office, with some making up to five unsuccessful trips before being attended to.

He added that the cost of processing such changes had risen sharply from the official N1,500 charged at accredited centres to as much as N15,000 at the JAMB office, often inflated by unofficial fees.

The statement partly reads, “The consequences of this are far-reaching. Students are now forced to travel long distances – sometimes from remote parts of the state – just to access basic services at the JAMB state office.

“From my interaction with the students, I learnt that many have made up to five unsuccessful trips before being attended to. What is more troubling is the sharp increase in the cost of processing these changes: a service that should ordinarily cost around N1,500 at accredited centres now costs up to N15,000 at the JAMB office – often padded by unofficial fees.”

While acknowledging that JAMB may have valid reasons for blacklisting some centres, Obi questioned whether a more humane and transparent approach could not have been adopted, suggesting that such centres could be allowed to operate under close monitoring pending the outcome of investigations.

He urged the examination body to “reconsider its position and embrace a more compassionate and efficient response that makes the welfare of the students a priority,” stressing that education remains the hope of the nation and should not be jeopardised by bureaucratic bottlenecks. (Nigerian Tribune)