Oga LecturerBy Fatimah Quadri
THE Nigerian Police Force (NPF) has arrested a 22-year-old male staff of a Computer Based Testing (CBT) centre in Lagos for attempting to woo a minor who registered for the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) at the centre.
The incident occurred on Monday, January 29, after the student’s mother, with username Iphieajike on X, made a post on Saturday, January 27, 2024, calling the attention of the Joint Admissions and Matriculations Board (JAMB) to the issue.
Iphieajike provided her own contact details to set up her daughter’s profile during the registration and subsequently received text messages from the staff, who was under the impression that he was chatting with the student.
“This guy is committing so many criminal offences at once it’s crazy. He’s still chatting with me. He says he got her number from the system after she registered and left cos he couldn’t help himself. JAMB where are my daughter’s data protection rights?” she tweeted.
She shared details of their conversation in a series of posts, and in response, JAMB promised that the offender and his accomplices would be brought to book.
“Thank you for this information. The Board, as a regulatory agency does not condone any form of unwholesome practice that would bring its integrity to disrepute, you can rest assured that your ward’s information on our database is safe and intact and that the culprit and his accomplices would be decisively brought to book.
“Kindly DM the details of the CBT Centre and the phone number in question for further investigation or visit any JAMB office nearby to lodge a formal complaint,” JAMB disclosed via X.
Iphieajike confirmed in a follow-up post on Monday that the culprit and his accomplice had been arrested.
“UPDATE!!!! The guy has been arrested. Him and his accomplice, the guy that registered my child, are currently in custody! Thanks to @JAMBHQ for your swift response. I’m grateful.” she posted.
Oga Lecturer contacted the Lagos State Police Command for more information on the issue, but the Public Relations Officer (PRO) Benjamin Hundeyin had not responded to a text message sent to his him at the time of filing this report.
Further reacting to the issue, an ICT consultant of the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB), Damilola Bamiro, warned registration officers in computer-based test (CBT) centres nationwide to adhere to candidate registration criteria or face revoking access to the centres.
He noted that the CBT centre located in the Ajah area in Lagos state, where the event had taken place, would have their access withdrawn. While candidates who had registered at the centre before the clampdown remained valid, no other registration would take place or be recognised by the board at the said centre.