By FUNMILAYO ADEYEMI

The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) has dismissed claims that candidates already in universities were barred from registering for the 2026 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) and Direct Entry (DE).

The Board dismissed the claims in a statement by its spokesperson, Dr Fabian Benjamin, in Abuja on Wednesday.

Benjamin said the claims were a distortion of its guidelines by self-styled education advocates seeking attention and traffic on social media platforms.

He said the 2026 UTME/DE advertisement clearly directed candidates to disclose their matriculation status during registration, in line with its mandate to prevent multiple admissions.

He explained that It was not an offence for a candidate already enrolled in an institution to register for the UTME or Direct Entry examinations.

The JAMB spokesperson said that failure to disclose an existing matriculation status constituted an offence under the law governing admissions.

Benjamin added that disclosure meant that once a candidate secured a fresh admission, any previous admission automatically ceases to exist.

He said that no candidate was legally permitted to hold two admissions concurrently under Nigeria’s admission regulations.

He said that mandatory disclosure has helped to curb the activities of matriculated students engaging as professional examination takers.

The spokesperson warned that candidates who failed to disclose prior to matriculation, risk forfeiting both admissions, if detected by its system.

He, however, urged the public to rely on official guidelines and avoid misleading interpretations circulated for selfish interests. (NAN)