BY NGOZI NWANKWO, ABUJA – The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB), has said it has no hands whatsoever in the inability of some graduates with Higher National Diploma (HND) to participate in the mandatory one-year National Youth Service Corps (NYSC).
The HND graduates said they did HND on full-time but were not mobilised because they did OND on part-time and therefore castigated JAMB for their inability to enroll and participate in the current batch of Corps members presently in orientation camps.
However, JAMB explained that the admission to HND is unknown and irrelevant to its mandate, stressing that accusing the Board on issues it has no mandate is preposterous.
JAMB specifically said that some of these graduates crossed the lines of criminality which the Board will soon address appropriately.
Spokesman of JAMB, Dr. Fabian Benjamin, who stated the position of the Board on the issue, stressed that JAMB was in no way involved, neither has it authority, or control over the admissions process for HND candidates.
Benjamin said; “The candidates claimed they did HND on full-time but were not mobilised because they did OND on part-time. How on earth does that concern JAMB when Section 5(2) of the law that established JAMB states that, “For the avoidance of doubt, the Board shall be responsible for determining matriculation requirements and conducting examinations leading to undergraduate admissions, as well as for admissions to National Diploma and Nigerian Certificate in Education courses.
“However, the Board shall not be responsible for examinations or any other selective processes for postgraduate courses or any other courses offered by tertiary institutions.
“Most of the students were reported to have been admitted into their institution for National Diploma (ND), without the knowledge of the Board. With this, the Board graciously condoned and endorsed the said admission for ND programme and that was the only relationship with such candidates,” he explained.
JAMB therefore, urged the public to disregard the accusations labelled against it as it has no mandate on such matter.
