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The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) has announced the engagement of leading IT specialists and educational assessment experts to investigate reported technical issues during the 2025 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME).

The decision follows widespread complaints from candidates who attributed the high failure rate in the recently concluded examination to alleged system malfunctions. Out of the 1.9 million candidates who sat for the exam, over 1.5 million reportedly scored below 200 out of a possible 400.

Reacting to the development, education advocate and Chief Executive Officer of Educare, Alex Onyia, revealed that thousands of affected candidates were preparing to initiate legal action against the examination body.

“Currently, we have 8,391 students who have sent in their complaints regarding the glitches in the JAMB 2025 exam,” Onyia stated via his official X (formerly Twitter) handle. “There is ample evidence to prove that JAMB’s system was inefficient, thereby causing serious harm to these students’ mental health.”

He further demanded transparency from the board, calling on JAMB to provide candidates with access to their mark sheets, including their scores, correct answers, and a means to contest discrepancies.

In response, JAMB’s spokesperson, Dr Fabian Benjamin, disclosed in a statement on Monday that the board had commenced a comprehensive post-examination review to assess the integrity of the 2025 UTME.

“As part of our system-wide audit, we have brought in experts from the Computer Professionals Association of Nigeria, Chief External Examiners from tertiary institutions, the Educational Assessment and Research Network in Africa, measurement specialists, and Vice Chancellors from various universities,” Benjamin said.

He explained that the review would cover all phases of the UTME process—from registration to result release—and assured that remedial actions would be taken if any faults were discovered.

“We take these concerns seriously. Should any lapses be confirmed, the board will not hesitate to apply appropriate corrective measures, in line with our established protocols,” he added.

The Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund) has issued a stern warning to beneficiary institutions, cautioning that those who fail to meet set standards or misappropriate allocated funds may be excluded from its intervention programmes.

TETFund Executive Secretary, Arc. Sonny Echono, gave the warning during a one-day strategic meeting with vice-chancellors, bursars, and procurement heads of beneficiary institutions held in Abuja on Monday.

Echono noted that the move is not intended as a punitive measure, but rather as a means of protecting the integrity and effectiveness of the Fund’s initiatives.

“Institutional beneficiaries that repeatedly neglect to access, properly utilise, or account for funds—or those that do not meet minimum enrollment and academic performance criteria—face the risk of being removed from the list of eligible institutions,” Echono stated.

He further emphasized TETFund’s commitment to channeling its resources toward institutions that demonstrate strong governance, transparency, and accountability.

The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has elected Prof. Chris Piwuna, a consultant psychiatrist at the University of Jos Teaching Hospital, as its new national president.

Prof. Piwuna, who also serves as the Dean of Student Affairs at the University of Jos, succeeds Prof. Victor Osodeke, a professor of soil science at the Michael Okpara University of Agriculture, Umudike, Abia State.

The election took place during the union’s 23rd National Delegates Congress held on Sunday in Benin City, Edo State.

Piwuna emerged president after defeating Prof. Adamu Babayo of the Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University, Bauchi.

His election comes amid rising concerns over possible industrial action, following unresolved issues relating to the sharing formula of the recently released earned Academic Allowances by the Federal Government, as well as ongoing challenges such as brain drain within the academic sector.

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has constituted a reconciliation committee led by former Senate President Bukola Saraki to engage aggrieved members ahead of its forthcoming National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting.

The decision was reached during a meeting held on Sunday night at the Abuja residence of the Chairman of the PDP Governors’ Forum and Bauchi State Governor, Bala Mohammed.

The meeting was attended by several key figures in the party, including the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, who declined to speak with journalists after the session.

Also present were Governors Ademola Adeleke (Osun), Caleb Mutfwang (Plateau), Ahmadu Fintiri (Adamawa), Seyi Makinde (Oyo), and Peter Mbah (Enugu). Former governors in attendance included Liyel Imoke (Cross River), Achike Udenwa (Imo), Olagunsoye Oyinlola (Osun), Okezie Ikpeazu (Abia), and Seriake Dickson (Bayelsa).

The PDP Acting National Chairman, Umar Damagun, former Caretaker Committee Chairman Ahmed Makarfi, and other members of the party’s National Working Committee also participated in the meeting.

Speaking to journalists, Governor Mohammed said the meeting was part of efforts to prepare for the party’s NEC meeting scheduled for the end of May. He also addressed recent defections within the party, saying they would ultimately strengthen the PDP.

He noted that the party was working on strategies to reclaim states previously governed by the PDP.

The party has faced internal challenges following the 2023 general elections, with fresh concerns arising over the defection of Delta State Governor Sheriff Oborevwori and members of his cabinet to the All Progressives Congress (APC).

Ondo State Governor, Lucky Aiyedatiwa, was seen in a viral video on Friday stepping into a classroom to teach, in a gesture that has drawn widespread public attention and praise.

The video, shared via the Governor’s official Facebook page with the caption “Once a teacher, always a teacher,” captures Aiyedatiwa writing the word “Drugs” on the board and engaging pupils in an interactive session. At one point, he asked the students to name three types of drugs, encouraging participation and eliciting enthusiastic responses.

While the school featured in the video has yet to be identified, the moment comes weeks after the governor approved the recruitment of 1,100 primary school teachers across the 18 local government areas of the state.

The recruitment, announced in March 2025, is part of a broader initiative to improve basic education in Ondo State. According to the governor, the exercise is being funded through the 2023/2024 Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC) and State Universal Basic Education Board (SUBEB) intervention programme

British-Nigerian art expert Oghenochuko ‘Ochuko’ Ojiri, known for his appearances on the BBC programme Bargain Hunt, has pleaded guilty in a terrorism financing case for failing to report a series of high-value art sales to a sanctioned individual.

Ojiri, 53, admitted to eight counts of failing to make a disclosure in the course of business under the Terrorism Act 2000, marking the first prosecution of its kind in the United Kingdom under that section of the law.

At a hearing on Friday at Westminster Magistrates’ Court, prosecutors revealed that between October 2020 and December 2021, Ojiri sold artworks worth £140,000 to Nazem Ahmad, a man accused by both US and UK authorities of financing the Lebanon-based proscribed group Hezbollah.

Prosecuting counsel Lyndon Harris told the court that Ojiri was aware of Ahmad’s sanctioned status, citing his involvement in conversations and media reports that highlighted Ahmad’s alleged ties to terrorism.

“There is one discussion where Ojiri is party to a conversation where it is apparent a lot of people have known for years about [Ahmad’s] terrorism links,” Harris said.

Despite hiring a third party to provide compliance advice, Harris noted that the guidance was not properly implemented. Ojiri was said to have directly negotiated with Ahmad and congratulated him on his purchases.

Ahmad was sanctioned by the United States in 2019 and later by the UK in 2023, with the British government imposing asset freezes and prohibiting any business dealings with him. Authorities said Ahmad held an “extensive art collection in the UK” and had transactions with “multiple UK-based artists, art galleries and auction houses.”

Ojiri’s gallery, formerly known as Ramp Gallery and now operating as the Ojiri Gallery in east London, was the venue for the transactions in question.