The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) will commence sending text messages from today (Thursday) to candidates scheduled for the 2025 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) resit.

According to JAMB Registrar, Prof. Ishaq Oloyede, approximately 379,997 candidates from Lagos State and the five South Eastern states will participate in the rescheduled examination.

During a press briefing in Abuja on Wednesday, Oloyede provided a breakdown of the affected candidates: "206,610 in 65 centres were affected in Lagos and 92 centres in Owerri zone comprising of 173,387 candidates in the five states of the South East were affected."

The JAMB Registrar took full responsibility for what he described as a "sabotage" of the 2025 UTME. "The affected candidates will start getting text messages for reschedule starting from tomorrow. I apologise, I take full responsibility," he stated.

This development comes amid concerns about the overall performance in the 2025 UTME. Out of the 1.9 million candidates who sat for the examinations, over 1.5 million scored below 200 out of the maximum 400 marks.

The announcement has already generated reactions from various stakeholders. Ohanaeze, the apex Igbo socio-cultural organization, has reportedly rejected the resit examination and is demanding 300 scores for South East candidates.

Additionally, the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has threatened legal action against JAMB over the mass failure recorded in the 2025 UTME.

Candidates affected by this rescheduling are advised to check their phones regularly for the notification message from JAMB regarding their new examination date and venue.