Exclusive: 'JAMB Registrar Not Resigning,' Nigerian Exam Body Speaks Amid Rife Speculations

• JAMB registrar, Prof. Ishaq Oloyede, admitted during a press conference on Wednesday, May 14, that telling errors happened during the UTME 2025
• Legit.ng reports that individuals and groups released statements calling for the immediate resignation of the JAMB boss
• However, JAMB, through Fabian Benjamin, its spokesperson, dismissed the calls, suggesting that Oloyede is fully focused on his role

Legit.ng journalist Ridwan Adeola Yusuf has over 9 years of experience covering education in Nigeria and worldwide.

FCT, Abuja - The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) on Thursday, May 15, dismissed speculations about the purported imminent resignation of its registrar, Ishaq Oloyede.

Legit.ng reports that there are strong speculations the JAMB helmsman has concluded plans to quit his role due to the tough events of the last few days.

Recall the results from JAMB’s 2025 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) were released on Friday, May 9. An analysis indicated that more than 78 percent of candidates scored less than 200 points out of the 400 maximum obtainable points.

This spurred protests that questioned the overall integrity of the examination process.

On Wednesday, May 14, Oloyede, a professor, admitted that mistakes in the UTME 2025 made by one of JAMB’s service providers led to distorted results for nearly 380,000 candidates in 157 centres across the Lagos and Owerri, Imo state zone (which includes the south-east states.

'Oloyede not planning to quit' - JAMB

On Thursday afternoon, May 15, speculations started, especially on X (formerly Twitter), that Professor Oloyede will submit his resignation—opting for an honourable route amid strong criticisms from a section of the Nigerian public and calls for his departure.

When contacted on Thursday evening, May 15, Fabian Benjamin, JAMB spokesperson, exclusively told Legit.ng that the rumour about Oloyede quitting was false.

He told Legit.ng in a terse message:

"He (Oloyede) is not resigning."

Before serving as JAMB registrar, Oloyede was the vice-chancellor of the University of Ilorin (UNILORIN). In 2016, Muhammadu Buhari, the Nigerian president at the time, appointed him as the registrar of JAMB, an appointment personally described as "divine" by him. His appointment was greeted by applause from several quarters of the Nigerian society.

Since he assumed office, Oloyede has been praised for transforming JAMB into a reference point in effective public service delivery, transparency, and accountability in Nigeria.

Read more JAMB-related content:

• UTME 2025: Businessman shares update on what happened to Mmesoma Ejikeme: "She was denied US visa"
• Ohanaeze rejects 2025 UTME resit, demands 300 score for candidates in south-east, “mental torture”
• JAMB/UTME 2025: The blind rage against truth and leadership, by Folorunso Fatai Adisa

JAMB launches emergency helpline

Earlier, Legit.ng reported that JAMB set up an emergency counselling support centre for candidates of the 2025 UTME, following widespread complaints over technical issues and mass failure.

JAMB said the new Candidate Counselling Emergency Support Centre (CCESC) would complement its existing ticketing platform, which remains the primary communication channel for candidate support.

The examination body urged candidates concerned to contact the helpline at 07002200016, where six officials – Gbenga, Yusuf, Dubem, Tony, Ogbonna, and Emma – will be available to assist.

Source: Legit.ng