UTME 2026: Are Candidates Required to Remove Hijab During Registration? JAMB Gives Answer
- JAMB has addressed the controversies surrounding the allegation that a 2026 UTME candidate was asked to take off her hijab during the registration process at ABUAD
- The examination board explained that the girl was only asked to follow the international standard of taking passports and visas during the registration
- According to JAMB, the examination board never directed that candidates should remove their hijab for any reason and that candidates' religious stances are respected
The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) has explained that candidates are not asked to remove their hijabs during registration. This is as the examination board reacted to a viral video alleging discrimination against a Muslim candidate of the 2026 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) at the Afe Babalola University (ABUAD).
AsakyGRN, a social media user, shared a video of a man lamenting that his sister was asked to remove her hijab before he can be taken for a photograph for her registration. The man in the video said he followed her sister to the JAMB office in Lagos.
Source: Twitter
The man added that following the capture, she was asked to sign an undertaking because she put on a hijab. He then asked, "Are Muslims now being discriminated against for wearing hijabs?”
JAMB reacts to hijab controversies
Reacting to the allegation via its verified page on social media, the examination board explained that it has never issued a directive that prohibited candidates from putting on a hijab
JAMB further explained that the situation at ABUAD was a standard biometric procedure. Adding that she was asked to remove her hijab in line with the international standard for passports and a visa, as the two ears are required to be visible during the capturing of the biometric.
The statement reads in part:
“This requirement is purely technical and is intended to ensure that proper facial recognition and identification do not require the candidate to remove her hijab.”
According to the examination board, the religious position of the candidate was highly respected.
Reactions as JAMB speaks on hijab controversies
The JAMB clarification has generated further response from Nigerians on social media. Below are some of their reactions:
Babzee mentioned another option of capturing:
"@JAMBHQ Why only in Nigeria? You can get her biometrics via her fingerprints, which are unique to each human being, coupled with her facials, so what's the craving for ears to be shown to?"
Source: Twitter
Khadijah Agunloye alleged that the system is new:
"@JAMBHQ When did you start this? We have been doing jamb registration without showing our ears during capturing. Please stop this confusion."
The Magnificent raised an issue in Benue:
"Why is JAMB sending students of St Joseph Secondary School, Nyiman, Makurdi, to go and write JAMB in Otukpo, Oju and Ugbokolo, thereby putting them at risk of kidnappers and bandits?"
Aládé Ìdòwú Oládàpọ̀ explained how his hijab students were captured:
"This is correct, my students didn't have to remove their hijab, they just shifted it a bit to reflect their ears, and it was all good."
You can read the full statement of JAMB on X here:
Source: Legit.ng
