A federal lawmaker, Tolulope Akande-Sadipe, has reinforced the need for the pending bill on the validity of the United Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) to be passed by the 10th National Assembly.
This came to the fore during an online seminar, where the lawmaker argued that the Joint Admission and Matriculation Board (JAMB) should not be a revenue-generating agency of government.
In a statement signed by her special assistant on media and publicity, Olamilekan Olusada, on Tuesday in Abuja, Ms Akande-Sadipe argued that UTME should not be conducted every year.
The lawmaker, who represents Oluyole Federal Constituency in Oyo state, reiterated that JAMB should not be assessed on the revenue generated to the federal government coffers but on the quality of examination it conducts.
Ms Akande-Sadipe noted that the bill intends to extend the validity of UTME results from one year to a minimum of three years and a maximum of five years.
“I sponsored the bill on March 16, 2022, on the floor of the House of Representatives, but because of the magnitude of bills that go to the floor of the House, it would have gone far.
“But, however, the bill has gotten to the committee level and we are almost there. If it becomes a reality, it will take a lot of hardship away from many homes”, she said.
According to Ms Akande-Sadipe, the validity of other internationally accepted examinations can last up to five years in some countries.
She highlighted GMAT, GRE, IELTS, TETOFL, SAT, MCAT, PTE, and USMLE as examples of international standards tests.
“I am not asking that the exam tenure be extended in cases where people fail. I am asking that it should be extended when people pass the exam.
“In Nigeria, every year you take JAMB and if you don’t get into the tertiary institution, you have to repeat it; Why?” Ms Akande-Sadipe queried.
She stated that the UTME should be viewed as a test to determine a candidate’s preparedness to attend a university/tertiary institution and that a candidate’s readiness should not change after attempting and passing it once.
