Despite warning by Joint Admission and Matriculation Board, (JAMB), some telecommunication service providers over the weekend tacitly defrauded unsuspecting candidates who wanted to obtain JAMB profile codes in the ongoing 2018 United Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME), registration exercise, StraightNews has discovered.
Candidates were directed by JAMB to text their names using any network provider to a short code, after which they would receive a profile code of 10 characters. The candidate would therefore be required to use the profile code provided for the registration process.
But StraightNews reporter who visited one of the JAMB registration centres at Gestric Company, 74 Oron Road, Uyo in Akwa Ibom State to monitor the situation, saw some candidates wearing long faces due to frustration in obtaining JAMB profile codes caused mostly by Airtel and MTN service providers.
On Friday last week, one Umoh who took his two children to the centre for registration left in anger as the two children sent text messages twice costing N50 each to Airtel and MTN only to receive “Sorry, there is no response from JAMB. We will get to you as soon as we get a reply from JAMB.”
According to Umoh, “One of my children sent text twice to Airtel and the other twice to MTN but there was no success. By this time, my children had coughed up N200 worth of SMS to the two providers without success. They waited till evening, yet the profile code did not come. They had to buy two GLO recharge cards costing N300 each, sent messages to JAMB and got profile codes from JAMB.”
A lady, Anita sent the message on behalf of her daughter to MTN three times, but there was no response making her to look so worn-out.
She approached the lady at the centre who was collecting N700 for capturing of the candidates and complained “What am I going to do next? I had sent the messages thrice to MTN to get registration, but there is no success.”
The lady advised her “Keep trying as the problem could be caused by poor network. Other candidates complained same, but I advise to try again. This is the problem with Nigerian thing.”
At 2 Wellington Bassey way, Uyo, another JAMB registration centre, the situation did not improve as candidates were seen looking frustrated due to their inability to obtain their profile codes from JAMB due to antics of the service providers.
One Ukeme, 15, who wanted to register was unhappy that he spent his credit to the service providers for nothing without getting the profile code.
“Since morning, I was here to register. I had sent twice, yet there is no favourable answer. I said let me wait perhaps by afternoon the situation would improve. From all indications, there would be no change. I want to go home. I will come back tomorrow and continue from where I stopped today,” he bemoaned.
At Plaza, some candidates who tried without success were sad at the development. One Eno, 16, wanting to read Medicine and Surgery, felt like casting stone on the disappointing service providers.
“If I could see these people, I would have stoned them for defrauding us. We are unemployed, but our parents mopped up a little cash for us. See the frustration, they are causing us just to get registration code,” she berated.
Efforts to reach the marketing managers of Airtel and MTN in Uyo proved abortive.
Meanwhile, JAMB Thursday warned telecommunication service providers to stop multiple charges on candidates attempting to register for the 2018 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination.
In the report published by The Punch, JAMB noted that nobody must suffer for the providers’ poor network service.
The JAMB said it would insist on a refund by the service providers which defrauded candidates.
Fabian Benjamin, the board’s spokesperson, in a statement, said the providers must stick to the agreement reached with the board.
Benjamin said, “We have heard about multiple Short Messaging Service charges on candidates’ phone numbers attempting to register for the 2018 UTME and the Direct Entry by the telecommunications companies. These companies were enlisted to provide a profile code creation service through sending and receiving of SMS.
“The telecom companies are to charge only N50 per SMS to use the service. Candidates are made to repeat these SMS commands several times either due to poor network or processing failure after the command is sent.
“The board therefore advises telecom service providers to stop the multiple charges and stick to the agreement reached with the board. Candidates who are victims of these multiple charges are to raise a complaint for redress and further action by the board.
“The board would insist on a refund by any telecoms provider that continue to charge these candidates twice. We are mindful of the nation’s network challenges and do not expect the candidates to pay for the telecoms infrastructural difficulties.”