A committee established by the Anambra State government to investigate the controversy surrounding Miss Ejikeme Joy Mmesoma’s Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) score has found her guilty and suggested that she should undergo psychological counseling and therapy.
The panel, consisting of eight members, also recommended that Mmesoma promptly issue a sincere written apology to the Joint Admission and Matriculation Board (JAMB), her school (Anglican Girls’ Secondary School, Uruagu Nnewi), and the Anambra State government.
Based on the panel’s findings, Mmesoma’s claimed results, which displayed an aggregate score of 362, were determined to be fraudulent. The committee pointed out significant and noteworthy discrepancies in her registration number, date of birth, center name, and other violations. Mmesoma herself confessed to manipulating the fake results using her mobile phone.
During the investigation, the committee observed that both the Principal of Anglican Girls’ Secondary School, Uruagu Nnewi, and the Education Secretary of the Diocese of Nnewi were astonished by the revelations. Mmesoma openly admitted to tampering with her UTME results in their presence, thus deceiving the school, her immediate family, and the state government.
As part of their inquiry, the committee summoned Ejikeme Joy Mmesoma, the Principal of Anglican Girls’ Secondary School, and JAMB officials for an interactive session.
“JAMB officials led by Dr.Fabian Benjamin, the Head Public
Affairs, presented the detailed processes and procedures involved in JAMB admissions, the policy changes that have occurred in the release of UTME scores since 2021 and what specifically transpired between the candidate Ejikeme Joy Mmesoma with registration number: 20230639047FF in her quest to obtain her JAMB score.
“JAMB revealed the different times that Ejikeme Joy Mmesoma made several requests to JAMB portal asking for her results at different hours, and each of these times (four in number), she received in her phone, same results from JAMB indicating candidate’s UTME results to wit: Eng: 64, Phy:54, Bio: 74, Che: 57 with a total aggregate score of 249.
“JAMB disclosed that the candidate was well informed of her correct score from JAMB. But she sent a request to JAMB with a different registration number showing a UTME result of aggregate score of 362, with Eng: 98, Phy: 89, Bio: 94, and Che: 81.
“The results she sent differed substantially from the standard JAMB format where she got an appropriate rebuttal stating her real score of 249.
“Besides, a number of red-flags was also highlighted by JAMB officials showing a different date of birth, different registration number, notification of results template that has been discarded since 2021, amongst others. “It was also evident that even the centre name “Nkemefuna Foundation (Thomas Chidoka Centre for Human Development as it was known before now) used for the examination, was also manipulated where the candidate used the old name of the centre (Thomas Chidoka Centre for Human Development) in her own manipulated result sheet.
“In Ejikeme Joy Mmesoma’s submission, she owned up in the presence of her principal, and the Education Secretary that the narration by the JAMB officials was a true and correct description of what transpired.
“She also admitted to have given a manipulated result by herself unaided, using same phone Airtel Number.”
According to the report, it was mentioned that Mmesoma visited a cybercafé called Prisca Global Computers in Uruagu, Nnewi, where she printed the manipulated results. The committee attempted to determine the motive behind her actions but she simply stated “nothing.”
The committee expressed appreciation to JAMB for their thorough handling of the case and for providing information regarding their interaction with the candidate.
