AWKA, Nigeria – The family of Miss Mmesoma Ejikeme, along with the authorities of her school, are demanding the immediate release of the investigation findings regarding the controversy surrounding her 2023 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination, UTME, results.
Miss Mmesoma, who is 16 years old, had scored 362 in the UTME, but the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board, JAMB, declared her score as fake, claiming it was manually inflated from an original score of 249.
Romanus Ejikeme, Mmesoma’s father, and her school principal, Egum Uchechukwu, have called for a thorough and transparent investigation into the matter to safeguard Mmesoma’s future and educational aspirations.
They are urging the Department of State Services, DSS, to release the findings of its investigation on the allegation and have questioned JAMB’s decision to publicize the allegations against Mmesoma via social media prior to the conclusion of the DSS investigation.
Romanus Ejikeme defended his daughter’s integrity, describing her as a brilliant student who has consistently excelled academically since nursery school.
He recounted that Mmesoma was not even aware of her score until people began congratulating her, having seen her results online.
He expressed distress over the way his daughter and family have been treated following the release of her UTME score.
“The DSS was sent after her, using the outcome of the result to intimidate her and the entire family,” Ejikeme stated.
He also contested the claim by the State Commissioner for Education, Prof Ngozi Chuma-Udeh, that Mmesoma reported late to the ministry when she was invited on June 30, 2023.
He affirmed that Mmesoma, accompanied by school officials, arrived on time at the state Ministry of Education in Awka.
Mrs. Egum Uchechukwu, Mmesoma’s school principal, supported Mr. Ejikeme’s statements and appealed for an in-depth investigation to vindicate Mmesoma.
Prof. Ngozi Chuma-Udeh, the Commissioner for Education, insisted that another student, Miss Nkechinyere Umeh, who scored 360, is the top scorer in the JAMB result and was accordingly honoured on Friday, June 30, 2023.
The Commissioner mentioned that Mmesoma eventually brought her result to the office but was taken by the DSS from there for further investigation.
The case has drawn significant attention and concerns from the public, as Mmesoma’s academic future hangs in the balance pending the outcome of the investigations
