The Minister of Education, Dr. Tunji Alausa, has linked the number of poor performances in the 2025 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) to the Federal Government’s intensified war against examination malpractice.

According to the minister, the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) has become a model for transparent examinations, owing to its strict computer-based testing (CBT) system that has virtually eliminated cheating.

In an interview on a national television, Dr. Alausa clarified that the 2025 UTME mass failure recorded is not due to a decline in student intelligence but rather a sign that the integrity of the examination system has been restored.

“This is not about the students being unintelligent. It’s a reflection of exams now being done the proper way,” Alausa stated.

The minister added: “JAMB conducts its exam using CBT and has built a fortress of security around the process. Fraud or cheating has been almost completely wiped out. Unfortunately, we can’t say the same about WAEC and NECO yet.”

Alausa said that efforts are underway to extend the JAMB-style anti-cheating measures to other national examination bodies. Beginning from November, WAEC and NECO will be migrating to CBT, with full adoption expected by 2027 across all major exam bodies, including EMBRAS and NBTEB.

“The solution is technology. From November this year, WAEC and NECO will begin using computer-based tests. We must dismantle this culture of malpractice from the roots,” the minister said.

He condemned the pervasive exam fraud in secondary schools, blaming it for cultivating a generation of students who are rewarded for dishonesty while hard working candidates are sidelined.

“Students cheat their way through WAEC and NECO and then crash during JAMB because there’s no room for malpractice. That’s the result we’re seeing now,” he said. 

Alausa warned that the current system punishes honest students, leading to widespread discouragement.

“If I’m preparing for WAEC and I see my peers have access to the leaked questions, why would I study? I’ll feel left behind and join them. That’s the reality,” he stated.

He described the malpractice network as a full-blown ecosystem involving students, parents, teachers, and invigilators.

Drawing from his own experience as a former school teacher, Alausa expressed his resolve to cleanse the system.

“We have allowed this decay to fester for too long. JAMB is now a clean exam. We must do the same for WAEC and NECO. This is about building the future of our country,” he said.

Alausa said that Nigerian students are inherently capable but are victims of a flawed system.

“Our youth are smart and full of potential. But the corrupt environment around them is the problem. We are determined to change that narrative,” he said.

The 2025 UTME saw over 1.5 million candidates score below 200, a figure that has triggered widespread concern and debate across the country.