JAMB Reacts as CBT Centre Stops UTME Candidate For Wearing Hijab
- JAMB has reacted to the viral report of a UTME candidate being denied entry to a CBT centre over her use of hijab
- Fabian Benjamin, the spokesperson of JAMB, in a statement on Thursday, April 14, reacted to the incident at the Esther Oshikoya CBT Centre in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital
- According to the JAMB spokesperson, the action was neither taken by the board nor by the centre, but by an overzealous ad hoc staff member
The Joint Admission and Matriculation Board (JAMB) has reacted to the hijab discrimination issue that happened at the Esther Oshikoya CBT Centre in Ibadan on Thursday, April 16.
At the centre, it was reported that a candidate of the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) was stopped by the Computer-Based Test (CBT) centre because of her hijab and was asked to remove her hijab before she would be allowed to enter the centre.
Source: Twitter
Reacting to the incident, Fabian Benjamin, JAMB spokesperson, in a statement on Thursday, April 16, explained that the examination board "promptly intervened by calling the ad hoc official involved to order and issuing immediate instructions that no candidate wearing a hijab should be asked to remove or alter it."
Benjamin explained that the centre did not carry out the act, nor did the board issue such a directive, but it was an act of an ad hoc staff member who failed to adhere to the JAMB stipulated guidelines.
JAMB reiterated that the action was not in line with its screening guidelines and that it respects the religious beliefs and customs of every Nigerian, and that the incident at the Ibadan CBT centre has been addressed promptly.
Nigerians react as JAMB addresses UTME candidate's saga
Meanwhile, Nigerians have continued to react to the development. Below are some of their comments:
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JAMB 2026: Uproar as officials tell Muslim JAMB candidates to take off Hijab at exam centre
Sulaimon Ìdòwú said that the ad hoc staff should be punished:
"The overzealous ad-hoc staff should be punished to serve as a deterrent to other staff. This is not the first time such a thing has happened. It has been happening for years now. I'm sure it will happen again next year. It doesn't make any sense."
Source: Twitter
Bilkis called for training and retraining of the ad hoc staff and JAMB officials:
"I think training and retraining of your staff and ad hoc staff prior to the exam date should be prioritised to curb this yearly recurrence. If a student who isn’t strong enough emotionally experiences such treatment on the exam day, it will definitely affect her performance. We can do better as a people and organisations."
Spectator threatened to sue the ad hoc staff:
"Kindly provide us with the full details of the alleged overzealous ad-hoc official, to enable us to initiate appropriate contempt of court proceedings against him or her. Thank you."
Akeem Akeem called for a sanction on the centre:
"The barbaric religious discrimination will continue unless there is stiff sanctions for any center who engaged in such acts, as it happens every year, and intentionally, which would cause emotional damage to the students. The centre should be blacklisted to serve as a deterrent."
You can read more comments on X here:
JAMB speaks on hijab saga at ABUAD
Legit.ng earlier reported that 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.
Source: Legit.ng
