Former presidential candidate of the Labour Party, Peter Obi, has called on the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) to adopt a more compassionate and transparent approach in its treatment of blacklisted CBT centres across Nigeria, particularly in Anambra State.
Taking to his X (formerly Twitter) account on Friday, Obi shared an emotional plea titled “JAMB: A Plea for Compassion” after meeting a large group of distressed students at the JAMB office in Amawbia, Anambra.
He explained that out of 28 approved CBT centres in the state, 17 have been blacklisted, leaving thousands of students stranded. Many of the affected centres reportedly received no specific reasons for the sanctions, only being told they were “under investigation.”
“These young Nigerians, already under immense pressure, now face even greater financial, physical, and emotional strain,” Obi said. “The students told me they were there to change courses or institutions but could not access those services elsewhere.”
According to him, the absence of nearby functioning CBT centres has forced students to travel long distances, often repeatedly, to the JAMB state office. There, he claimed, the cost of services such as change of course or institution has skyrocketed from ₦1,500 at approved centres to as much as ₦15,000, driven by unofficial fees.
Obi expressed worry that the situation comes at a time of deepening economic hardship and rising insecurity, stressing that “students and their parents must not suffer so needlessly.”
While acknowledging that JAMB might have valid grounds for the blacklisting, he proposed a more humane interim solution, allowing affected centres to operate under strict supervision until investigations are concluded.
“Education remains the hope of our nation. We must not allow bureaucratic bottlenecks and opacity to derail the dreams of our young people,” Obi concluded.
