Daud Olatunji
The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) has revealed that eight students are currently serving jail terms for forgery related to the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME).
The JAMB registrar, Professor Is-haq Oloyede, disclosed this while briefing stakeholders on the organization’s activities for the year 2024.
Professor Oloyede highlighted the case of a student from Ondo State who was sentenced to a one-year jail term for a forgery offence similar to that of Mmesoma Ejikeme.
He added that around 30 other students were arrested for similar crimes during the 2024 UTME.
“Of Mmesoma’s case, Mmesoma was just lucky, if she is lucky at all. But you know that her colleagues were sentenced.
“I gave you an example of what happened in Ondo, with one who did a similar thing. She was sentenced to one-year imprisonment. This is to serve as a deterrence for others.
For 2024, more than 30 were arrested, eight now are in custody. They used to be 30,” Professor Oloyede stated.
Mmesoma, a 19-year-old student of Anglican Girls Secondary School in Nnewi, became infamous after JAMB accused her of fraudulently altering her UTME score from 249 to 362, falsely claiming to be the top scorer for the 2023 UTME.
Initially, she vehemently denied the allegations and engaged in a public exchange of accusations with JAMB.
However, she later admitted to the forgery.
Following her admission, JAMB imposed a three-year ban on Mmesoma.
She also faced a panel of the House of Representatives in Abuja, where she issued an apology to JAMB and requested leniency.
The Anambra State Commissioner for Education, recalling a panel set up by the state to investigate the matter, recommended that Mmesoma undergo psychological counselling and therapy.
The registrar emphasised that the sentencing and arrest of students for forgery are meant to serve as a strong deterrent to others who might consider engaging in similar fraudulent activities.
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