The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board, JAMB on Sunday insisted the use of electronic devices by candidates during the unified tertiary matriculation examinations (UTME) remained prohibited.
The agency said electronic devices like mobile phones, calculators, wristwatches and recorders won’t be allowed into any of its centres by candidates during this year’s examination.
JAMB stated these in its Weekly Bulletin obtained by our reporter in Abuja on Sunday.
Some of the banned items include: spy reading glasses, cameras, ear piece, Bluetooth devices, USB, CD, hard disk and other similar storage devices.
Others are: pen/biro, smart lenses, books or any reading/writing material, ink/pen readers, key holders, ATM cards, erasers and smart rings/jewelries.
The statement reads: “To ensure that the board’s examinations meet best global practice, the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board has prohibited the use of the following items during examinations.
“Candidates are hereby advised in their best interest not to bring these items close to the examination venue. Any breach of this directive would bar the candidates from taking the examination.”
JAMB’s Spokesperson, Dr. Fabian Benjamin, said candidates have been complying with the directives since it was introduced by the agency.
He stated some candidates who breached the directive and brought some of the devices to the hall were caught and handed over to security agencies.
According to him, the essence of the ban is to ensure that JAMB’s examination meets global best practice.
He said: “Candidates have been complying. The board had provided lockers where candidates can lock their personal belongings. However, if you are caught in the hall with any of them, certainly you would be sanctioned.
“Last year we caught a lady that had a phone in her private part and she was taken to the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps and she was prosecuted.”
Chairman, Governing Board of JAMB, Dr. Emmanuel Ndukwe, attributed the ban on cyber café from handling its registration on the need to have a seamless, free from all kinds of infractions registration process.
Ndukwe noted the ban became inevitable following the review of the activities of cybercafé operators.
He explained that registration was a vital component of any successful examination and as such, it should not be marred by extortion, mismatched data and poor technical know-how.
He added that the agency would continue to define the code of operations with a view to enhancing the system for the benefit of all candidates.