The Association of Educational Services and Cyber Café Operators (AESCCO) has written to the Senate protesting the policy by JAMB that Cyber cafe operators will not be allowed to register candidates for the 2017 UTME.

According to the letter which was Dated 6 March and signed Mr. Femi Aborisade, lawyer to AESCCO, the policy, announced by JAMB on its website, is discrimination against cyber cafés run by small and medium scale owners in favour of JAMB-accredited CBT centres owned by big- time businessmen.

“UTME applicants should be allowed to register for the examination from their individual computer units and/or those owned by their parents and guardians rather than be compelled to patronize CBT centres. Where some individual applicants do not have their own computer units, such applicants should be allowed to exercise the freedom to patronize either a CBT centre or the cyber cafés.” The letter stated.

While admitting that small scale cyber café owners may be involved in examination-related fraud, AESCCO argued that owners of big CBT centres are not exactly free of such dubious tendencies.

“If institutions of learning can conduct online registration for admission by applicants anywhere in the world, without limiting applicants to CBT centres, what is the peculiar difficulty of JAMB? If WAEC and NECO can successfully conduct registration for their examinations online without experiencing duplication and/or swapping of applicants’ data, why should the approach of JAMB be different,” asked AESCCO.

The body maintained that if this development is allowed, it will increase the current unemployment rate in Nigeria and asked the Nigerian Senate to take measures, including adopting a resolution to compel JAMB to execute its functions in line with constitutionally guaranteed rights.

Schoolparot