By Ghazali Ibrahim 
The Minister of Education, Dr. Tunji Alausa, has stated that the recent mass failure recorded in the 2025 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) is a clear reflection of the federal government’s success in fighting examination malpractice.
Speaking in an interview on Channels Television, Dr. Alausa said that over 76% of the 1.9 million candidates who sat for the 2025 UTME scored below 200.
However, the minister described the outcome as “a reflection of exams being done the proper way.”
“JAMB conducts its exam using computer-based testing. They have put so much security in place that fraud or cheating has been completely eliminated,” Alausa noted.
“It is not that the candidates are not intelligent. It is simply that cheating is no longer possible.”
He praised the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) for restoring credibility to the exam process, noting that its strict technological protocols have made it difficult for dishonest practices to thrive.
The minister contrasted this with the situation in the West African Examinations Council (WAEC) and the National Examinations Council (NECO), which he said remain heavily compromised by malpractice.
To address this, Dr. Alausa announced a reform: by November 2025, WAEC and NECO will begin transitioning to computer-based testing (CBT), following JAMB’s model.
By 2027, all major national examinations including those conducted by EMBRAS and NABTEB will be fully CBT-compliant.
“We have to use technology to fight this fraud. From November of this year, WAEC and NECO will migrate their exams to CBT,” he said.
“Government-owned ‘miracle’ centres are no longer acceptable.”
The minister was candid about the rot in the secondary school examination system, blaming parents, students, and invigilators for sustaining what he described as an “ecosystem of malpractice.”
“When students cheat through WAEC and NECO and face JAMB where they can’t cheat, the results show it. And that’s what you’re seeing now,” he said.
Dr. Alausa also warned about the long-term psychological effect of malpractice, especially for honest students.
“The more important thing about cheating is that you disincentivise the hardworking students. If I were a student and I know my classmates already have access to the questions, do you think I will read? I will join them,” he lamented.
He added that while many young Nigerians have the potential to succeed, the current environment pushes them toward dishonesty.
“They are not naturally dishonest. It is the environment. And that is what we are determined to stop,” the minister emphasized.
Despite the gloomy statistics, Dr. Alausa expressed optimism about the reforms ahead.
“We cannot afford for this pervasiveness to continue in our education system. That is why we are attacking this frontally,” he concluded.
