The 2023 Labour Party’s presidential candidate, Peter Obi, has called on authorities to ensure that candidates registering for the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination are not made to suffer due to administrative lapses by the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board.

In a statement shared on his verified X handle on Monday, Obi expressed concern over the hardship faced by students at registration centres, particularly at the board’s office in Amawbia, Anambra State, following the proscription of several computer-based test centres over alleged infractions.

He recalled that similar concerns were raised last year, with expectations that corrective steps would be taken to ease the situation. However, Obi said his visit to the area last Friday revealed that large crowds and confusion still persist, adding that reports indicate the problem is not limited to one state.

While acknowledging that the authorities may have legitimate reasons for sanctioning affected centres, he urged the adoption of what he described as a more humane and balanced approach.

According to him, centres under investigation could be permitted to offer limited services under strict supervision, while previously approved centres could be temporarily reactivated to reduce pressure on state offices if approving new ones would take time.

Obi warned that with the registration deadline set for February 26, many candidates risk missing the examination despite being prepared, noting that some travel from remote communities and even sleep in Awka to secure registration slots.

“If nothing urgent is done, some will miss the examination, not for lack of preparation, but because the system failed them,” he said.

He stressed that students should not bear the consequences of systemic failures, calling for urgent intervention to prevent young people’s academic futures from being jeopardised by avoidable administrative bottlenecks.

“Students cannot be made to suffer the failings of a system to which we have all, in one way or another, contributed. What is required now is not blame, but swift and compassionate intervention,” Obi added.