Dr Chris Igbokwe, UNN Registrar made known in a statement signed by him and posted on the university’s official website on Thursday.

Igbokwe said candidates who made UNN their first choice and scored 180 and above in UTME were eligible for the screening.

He said candidates were expected to pay a processing fee of N2,000.00 through Remita platform in any commercial bank of their choice on or before Aug. 28.

According to him, direct entry candidates that made UNN their first choice should also register for the screening exam.

“Online registration starts on Aug. 5 and ends on Aug. 28.

“Candidates are expected to log on to UNN website: www.unn.edu.ng for details on process of registration,” he added.

According to Punch, the board stated this in its weekly bulletin obtained, adding that the 2020 UTME cut-off marks would be decided at a stakeholders’ policy meeting that would be chaired by the Minister of Education, Adamu Adamu.

“Kindly disregard any cut-off marks paraded by fraudsters. It is fake news,” JAMB said.

The board’s Head of Media and Information, Dr Fabian Benjamin, added, “The board has fixed the policy meeting for June 15 and 16, 2020. Cut-off marks are decided at a policy meeting chaired by the Minister of Education with all the heads of tertiary institutions, chief executive officers of regulatory agencies in education and all other critical stakeholders in attendance.

“This meeting has been fixed for June 15 and 16, all things being equal. Until this meeting is held, nobody can talk about cut-off marks. Nigerians are advised to disregard any such marks being paraded.”

Head, Media and Information, Dr Fabian Benjamin, who spoke with the Newsmen on Wednesday in Lagos, clarified this, adding that such rumours are from fraudsters and should be disregarded.

He also noted that candidates who wrote their examination on Monday can now check their result by typing ‘RESULT’ and sending to 55019 with their unique telephone numbers for their scores.

”JAMB wishes to reassure all candidates who have written this year’s Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) so far that it has not canceled any of its examination or results.

”All results that have been released so far are intact and therefore there is no need for any panic whatsoever. ”Results of the 469,000 candidates who wrote on Monday have been released and candidates are to check their results by typing ‘RESULT’ and sending to 55019 with their unique telephone numbers for their scores.

“They should not check their results on the internet as the portal had been shut, following the attempt by some fraudsters to alter results of candidates.

“The board is already investigating the activities of these criminals and will not fail to take very drastic action against those that are behind this,” Benjamin said.

Benjamin also responded to complaints by some candidates and stakeholders that the board was deliberately posting candidates to centres far away from their areas of residence.

He said JAMB would not go beyond the carrying capacity of any centre all in a bid to fulfill the aspirations of candidates seeking to take the examination there.

Benjamin said, “Let me simply clarify here that JAMB does not post candidates just anywhere. “It is the candidates that chose their examination towns and once centres in that examination towns are filled, they are withdrawn from the net and candidates are then sent to other centres closest to such examination towns. It is not a deliberate act on our side.”

The board’s Head of Media and Information, Dr Fabian Benjamin, said that the results were released on Sunday, noting that candidates can now check their profiles for the results.

“The results of Saturday’s examination have been released. We are optimistic that the entire exercise will be hitch-free,” he said.

As the UTME would last till  April 4, a total of 469, 670 candidates on Monday sat for the examination in various Computer-Based Test centres across the country.

He urged candidates expected to sit for the 2020 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) to refrain from examination malpractice and admission racketeering.

NAN reports that Adamu spoke at the commissioning of JAMB’s New General Services Department building on Monday at the headquarters in Bwari, Abuja.

Adamu noted that the introduction of CAPS has revolutionized admission process in the interest of candidates, irrespective of where they come from, gender or social status.

He explained that, “CAPS ensure due process, fairness, discipline and equity in the process; it is through the automated system that ordinary Nigerians are now hopeful of not being denied the rightful place in the admission exercise.

“It is instructive that CAPS protects the traditional rights of the Senate and Academic Board of the institutions.

“This is because CAPS does not allow anyone other than the Admission officer, Vice-Chancellor, Provost or Rector, to initiate, propose or recommend any candidate for admission but also requires the documentation.

“Permit me to state that leadership of any higher institution found to be involved in admitting any candidate without prior approval of the Board or outside the established CAPS would be considered and treated as corrupting the admission process.”

Jamb Head of Media and Information, Fabian Benjamin, who spoke with NAN also disclosed that nearly 2 million prospective candidates have registered for the 2020 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME), the highest ever.

“There will be no extension for the registration of candidates for both the UTME and the Direct Entry (DE) as being speculated in some quarters.”

“Registration for this year’s examination ends by 12 midnight of Feb. 17, and that will be it for this year.

“The board is pleased with the way the exercise has gone so far and with this, we have registered over 1.9 million candidates.

“This figure is the highest that the board has ever recorded in the history of its examination.

“We are happy that we keep improving every day in a bid to ensure effective management of our operations,” he stated.

The spokesman added that a total of 669 out of the 747 centres across the country will be used for the conduct of the computer-based test (CBT).

The Board’s Head, Media and Information, Dr Fabian Benjamin, who revealed this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Lagos on Sunday, noted that in the past two weeks since the registration begins about 700,000 candidates have so far been registered.

Speaking on the registration process, Benjamin said the exercise has been hitch-free, with the impressive turnout from the first day at the various accredited Computer Based Test (CBT) centres nationwide.

“I will like to say we have actually found this exercise very interesting as we have already registered a total of 700, 000 prospective candidates for this year’s Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination in just 14 days.

“We have 21 days left to go for this registration exercise and we wish to call on all candidates, the UTME and Direct Entry, to seize the opportunity and register, as there will be no extension,” he said.

Benjamin noted that the Board had blacklisted 41 centres out of the 692 centres used, over issues such as registration cyber fraud, extortion and technical deficiency.

Meanwhile, JAMB which has earlier sanctioned the University of Abuja (UNIABUJA), warned schools to stop using its name to defraud Nigerians.

Benjamin said: “It has come to the knowledge of the Board that some elite schools are using the name of the Board to extort huge sums of money from parents under the guise that the Board has ordered such payments.

“The Board wishes to make it clear that unlike the West African Examinations Council (WAEC), the National Examinations Council (NECO) and others, the UTME and Direct Entry (DE) registration and examination exercises are not school-based.

“As such, schools have no role whatsoever in the Board’s operational processes.

“This is because these exercises require only the participation and engagement of individual candidates.

“Consequently, schools that are using the name of the Board to swindle parents of large sum of money for the purpose of registration or other services, are hereby warned to desist forthwith,” he said.

According to him, these affected schools may wish to employ other means to extort gullible parents but certainly such practice should not be at the expense of the Board or its processes.

Benjamin added that the information became necessary following discovery of series of data mutilation, owing to this unwholesome group processing of registration, among others.

“Parents are to note that the cost of the UTME forms remains N3,500 for the ePINs and N500 for the reading text and nothing more.

“Parents are to ensure that their children do this individually and not as a group. In addition, the CBT centres where the candidates register have been directed not to charge anything above N700 as their service charge,’’ Benjamin said.

On the Board’s advice on vending, Benjamin said it was important for vendors and candidates to know that certain measures had been taken by the Board to define the process of vending ePINs.

He said this was to serve as a guide against candidates exposing their personal data to fraudsters.

Benjamin urged candidates to note that any personal data divulged to any third-party, be it a vendor or agent could expose them to the risk of losing their UTME registration, thereby jeopardising their future aspirations.

“In view of the above, the Board wishes to reiterate that pin vending should be done directly to individual candidates and should be done online through the pin vending platform and not offline.

“There should be no bulk purchase of pins by candidates or secondary schools as is being done by some elite schools. All online vending should be done directly to each candidate on the presentation of his or her profile code.

“After vending the pin, the relevant pin should be sent to each candidate through his or her phone, hence there is no need to write the pin by hand, by any vendor or agent.

“Any vendor/agent who collects a prepared list with candidates’ names, profile codes and other vital details for the purpose of vending pins will be sanctioned.

“Similarly, any vendor collecting such prepared lists is hereby advised to desist with immediate effect as this action has severe consequences on the candidates whose data are being exposed indiscriminately,” he warned.

The spokesman of the corps, Mr Adamu Shehu, made the disclosure in a statement, noting that the Commandant, Mr Garba Muhammad, gave the charge when he paid a courtesy visit to the State JAMB Coordinator, Mr Bello Aminu, on Thursday in Dutse.

He quoted the commandant as alleging that intelligence reports indicated that some CBT operators were charging candidates above the official fees.

Muhammad added that the Commandant General of the Corps, Mr Abdullahi Gana, had ordered the corps to check the menace, warning that defaulters would be prosecuted.

“I call on CBT centre operators to charge only the official fee or risk revocation of licenses and prosecution,” Muhammad was quoted as saying in the statement.

The commandant reiterated the commitment of the corps to secure the Board’s offices; examination materials, ensure the safety of personnel and candidates as well as curb examination malpractices.

Also speaking, Aminu, disclosed that the Board had approved N4, 700; as examination registration fee per candidate, adding that any acts to the contrary violated the laws governing its operations.

According to the statement, the visit was a sequel to a meeting between the two agencies in Abuja, where the JAMB Registrar, Prof. Ishaq Oloyede, lauded the NSCDC over transparency in the discharge of its mandate.

The board has fixed this year’s examination for March 14 to April 4, while an optional mock examination for candidates is scheduled for Feb. 18.

Similarly, the board had said that it would commence the sales of its registration documents from Monday, Jan. 13, to Monday, Feb. 17.

The Head, Media and Information of the board, Dr Fabian Benjamin, told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Sunday in Lagos that arrangements for the commencement of the sales of the documents nationwide had been concluded.

“We are set to go. Logistics have been put in place to ensure a smooth process.

“Like you may know, over 650 CBT centres have been accredited for this year’s examination and the board expects nothing short of the best practices.

“We have clearly defined the process, just like we have also put mechanism in place that will address any challenge or challenges that may arise before, during and even after the examination.

“We also want to emphasise the fact that there is no going back on the use of the National Identification Number (NIN), for the acquisition of the registration documents by prospective candidates,” he said.

He urged candidates seeking to sit for this year’s UTME and who are yet to acquire the NIN to intensify efforts to do so in order to participate in the examination.

“My advice to the candidates ahead of the registration is to ensure that they seek advice or help from officials of the board.

“They should not involve third parties. They should always ensure too that they secure their personal data.

“They should not disclose it to anyone, not even the JAMB officials, because doing so could lead to mutilation of their records and other implications that could affect them much later in life.

“The board also wishes to state that the sale of Direct Entry forms closes same day as the UTME forms. There will be no extension,” Benjamin declared.

The JAMB Registrar, Prof Is-haq Oloyede, stated this at a stakeholders’ meeting on Monday in Abuja, where he met with Commissioners for Education from the 36 states.

Oloyede also noted that the registration for the UTME would start on January 13 and end on February 17.

Details soon…