In an exclusive telephone interview with Dr. Fabian Benjamin, the Head of Protocol and Public Relations at the Joint Admission and Matriculation Board (JAMB), it was revealed that the board is determined to ensure that Miss Ejikeme Mmesoma, a candidate for the 2023 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME), faces legal consequences for allegedly forging and inflating her result.
This strict action is intended to serve as a deterrent to other young individuals who may consider committing similar fraudulent acts in the future.
Dr. Fabian Benjamin made this statement on Tuesday morning, July 4, 2023, during an interview with Nationwide Reports. The interviewer questioned JAMB’s decision to impose a three-year ban on the candidate, considering the demand from the Anambra State Government and INNOSON Motors CEO for a thorough investigation into the matter.
Dr. Fabian Benjamin confirmed the ban while participating in the television program “Big Issue” the previous day.
In a video where Mmesoma vehemently denied the allegations of fraud. In response, JAMB’s spokesperson stated that both the Anambra State Government and INNOSON Motors CEO are welcome to conduct their investigations. However, he emphasized that these investigations would not hinder JAMB from fulfilling its statutory responsibilities.
Dr. Fabian Benjamin mentioned that he had been in contact with the Anambra State Education Commissioner and assured her of JAMB’s readiness to cooperate with the state government in the investigation.
The board is willing to provide all necessary documents and evidence as demanded by the probing body. According to Dr. Fabian, Mmesoma was cleverly deceptive in her fraudulent activities by utilizing an outdated JAMB result sample that had been phased out in 2021.
“The result she printed with 362 marks was not from us. That sort of result was phased out in 2021. The result sheet from JAMB also contains the candidate’s photograph. The one she forged does not contain her photograph.
“She printed one result on June 25th before doctoring what she printed on July 2. The two results also carried different dates of birth,” the JAMB spokesman said.
Fabian revealed that unknown to Miss Mmesoma, the Board had been closely monitoring all of her activities, as is the standard practice for all activities on the Board’s website.
“She is a liar. She knows that she is telling lies. We monitored all her nefarious activities and would supply all the evidence to the Anambra State government or any other organization probing or ready to probe the matter.”
Dr. Fabian emphasized that those supporting the young girl are inadvertently causing harm, as JAMB intends to carry out a thorough investigation and ensure her prosecution. This firm action aims to serve as a deterrent to other young individuals considering engaging in similar criminal activities.
“She will go to jail at the end of the day. We will follow the matter to a logical conclusion to deter other young people from such acts. We have no objection to anybody or any organization probing the issue. But that cannot stop us from carrying on with our official mandate. By the time all the details are out, Nigerians will see the extent that girl went to perpetrate the criminal act,” Dr. Fabian told Nationwide Reports.
Miss Ejikeme Mmesoma, who was previously reported to have scored an impressive 362 out of 400 in this year’s UTME, had received recognition for her achievement. She was awarded an N3 million scholarship by the CEO of INNOSON Motors, and the Anambra State Government had also pledged to reward her.
However, following the allegations of fraud made by JAMB, both the Anambra State Government and the CEO of INNOSON Motors expressed their intention to investigate the matter thoroughly to uncover the events leading up to the allegations.
In a statement released on Monday, Mmesoma’s family voiced their support for their daughter and claimed that there was a conspiracy to undermine her well-deserved academic success. Mr. Ejikeme Romanus, her father, highlighted that his daughter had consistently displayed exceptional academic brilliance since her early years in nursery school. Throughout her educational journey, from nursery to secondary school, she consistently achieved the first position in her class.
He said, “We are from Oduma in Aninri local government in Enugu state, but we live in Uruagu, Nnewi.
“Mmesoma is my first child. She had always taken the first position from the time she was in the nursery school at Ogbunike Central School.
“When she was at Oba Girls’ Secondary School, Mmesoma was representing the school in competitions. So when she changed to Anglican Girls’ Secondary School, her teachers in Oba Girls came and pleaded with me, begging me to retain her in their school; that she is promoting the name of their school.
“Mmesoma cannot manipulate her UTME score. I don’t believe what they are saying. They just want to transfer that scholarship to another person. That is why they are saying that Mmesoma did not make that score.”
