During a plenary session on Wednesday, members of the House of Representatives put forward a request for an extension of the validity period of the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examinations (UTME) conducted by the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) to three years. Additionally, they proposed that the examination be held twice a year.
The motion, introduced by Akintunde Rotimi, received adoption and support from the representatives. Rotimi argued that the current one-year validity period rendered the UTME result useless if a candidate failed to secure admission into a tertiary institution of their choice within the academic year in which the examination was taken.
He further emphasized that the annual conduct of the UTME by JAMB, despite recurring strikes by the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) and the resulting loss of academic years, overlooked the impact of these disruptions on academic calendars.
The representative expressed concern over the high number of candidates awaiting admission into the limited available spots in Nigerian tertiary institutions, highlighting the strain this situation places on the education system and parents.
He also noted that parents are experiencing “double jeopardy” over the development as they are compelled to enrol their wards for the exam yearly.
Following the adoption of the motion, the House called on the Federal Government to put in measures to ensure the execution o the resolutions.