Abuja: Controversy surrounds the highest scorer in the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) as the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) has uncovered discrepancies in the results of Chinedu Okeke, the top candidate in the 2025 UTME.
Prof. Ishaq Oloyede, JAMB Registrar, announced at the 2025 policy meeting of the board on Tuesday in Abuja that Okeke, an indigene of Anambra, emerged the best candidate with a score of 375 in the examinations.
Oloyede, however, said that the board made some discoveries regarding Okeke, who applied for Mechanical Engineering at the University of Lagos.
Oloyede explained that data from JAMB revealed that Okeke was admitted a year ago to the University of Nigeria, Nsukka (UNN), in the School of Medicine.
He stated that JAMB contacted UNN for clarification about the candidate, and the school confirmed that Okeke is a student of the institution, and he is doing well.
Speaking on the development, JAMB Public Communications Advisor Dr Fabian Benjamin said the board suspected foul play.
“The law does not allow a student to matriculate twice, and as an undergraduate, he has an advantage over the other candidates in the examinations.
“In his records, he claimed he is from the Southeast, while the other record reads that he is from Lagos state.
“We are suspecting that he is a mercenary in the examination,” Benjamin said.
The board also announced that John Ayuba from Gombe State came second in the examinations, scoring 374, while Olayinka Jimoh from Kwara State scored 373.
Other top scorers are Ayibo Roberts from Rivers, Chibueze Omonugbo from Enugu state, Tunmise Olawepo from Kwara and Leslie Afinotan from Delta, all scoring 373.
Also on the list of top scorers are Chukwuemeka Azoyenime from Delta, Emmanuel Oyebode from Ogun, and Cecil Omigie from Edo, all of whom scored 372 in the examinations.