Cross Rivers Varsity Finally Breaks Silence Over Alleged Tampering with Students’ Results
- UNICROSS denied allegations of result tampering and blamed delays on portal transition and inherited systemic lapses
- Management said challenges arose from incomplete data migration after the shutdown of the old examination portal
- The university introduced stricter controls, sanctioned erring staff and assured students of no extra charges
Cross Rivers, Calabar - The management of the University of Cross River State (UNICROSS) has denied allegations of tampering with students’ results.
Explaining the situation, the management of the university attributed the reported delays and discrepancies to a transition between examination portals, inherited systemic lapses and ongoing institutional reforms.
Source: Twitter
The clarification was given during a media briefing held by the university in Calabar, following sustained criticisms on social media over delayed results and graduation backlogs.
UNICROSS: ‘We must correct misconceptions’
Speaking at the briefing, the Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Academic), Prof. Stella-Maris Okey, said the university decided to address the matter publicly to correct what she described as widespread misconceptions about result administration at UNICROSS.
“The current management felt it was necessary to speak out and set the records straight on how results are processed and why certain delays have occurred,” Okey said.
She explained that the Vice-Chancellor assumed office in an acting capacity in January 2025 and was confirmed in July 2025, noting that the management team has been in office for just six months, Nigerian Tribune reported.
“We are dealing with challenges inherited from previous administrations while at the same time implementing reforms to stabilise the system,” she added.
Portal transition caused result access challenges
Also speaking, the Director of Exams and Results, Engr. Dr Anderson Etika, said the university was already transitioning from an old examination portal to a new one when the current Vice-Chancellor took office.
According to him, incompatibility between the two systems and unresolved financial obligations on the old portal led to its shutdown before data migration was completed.
“As a result, results stored in the cloud on the old platform became inaccessible,” Etika explained.
He said management directed departments to retrieve hard copies of results, a process involving academic records dating back to 2002 and amounting to more than five million data entries.
Efforts to clear graduation backlog intensify
Etika disclosed that to address the graduation backlog, management approved the migration of results covering the 2017/2018 to 2022/2023 academic sessions, describing the task as compressing several years of work into a short timeframe.
“What we are doing is essentially handling multiple academic sessions at once in order to ensure that affected students can graduate,” he said.
New controls introduced to prevent result manipulation
The Director of Exams and Results said the current administration has introduced reforms aimed at improving transparency and preventing result manipulation.
He noted that lecturers now have real-time access to upload results, but added that uploaded results can no longer be altered without the approval of the Vice-Chancellor, Nation reported.
“Lecturers are required to upload results within two to three weeks after examinations. Defaulters face sanctions, including salary withholding,” Etika said.
Students assured of no extra charges
Source: Getty Images
The university management assured students that no additional fees would be charged for delays caused by systemic issues and that affected students would graduate in the sessions originally scheduled for them.
Etika also revealed that resistance to the reforms by some staff members had contributed to internal tensions, adding that disciplinary measures, including suspensions, removal from office and salary stoppages, had been taken against those found culpable.
UNICROSS: Result platform is government-directed
Clarifying further, Etika said the result management platform currently in use is state-owned and government-directed, stressing that the decision to change the system predated the tenure of the current Vice-Chancellor.
He assured students and stakeholders that results prior to the 2017 academic session would be migrated once the present challenges are stabilised.
“Our focus is to restore confidence in the system and ensure that every student receives what is duly theirs,” he said.
Niger varsity student kills self over failed betting
Previously, Legit.ng reported that the Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida University (IBBU), Lapai, Niger state, has been thrown into mourning following the death of a 300-level Computer Science student, Kelvin Danlami, in circumstances linked to a betting loss of ₦600,0
Students and residents around the campus described the incident as devastating, saying the young man was full of promise and had shown no obvious signs of distress in the days leading up to his death.
Source: Legit.ng
