Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) has returned N3.5 billion to the Federation Account from the excess generated from its operations during the conduct of 2020 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME).

It said that it had returned N3.5 billion to the government following sales of ePINs to UTME candidates, bringing the total remittance this year by the board to N7 billion.

The board pledged to make further remittance to the government as soon as its operations are concluded and proper audit of its books done. JAMB’s Head of Media and Information, Mr Fabian Benjamin, disclosed this in a statement yesterday in Abuja.

Last year, the board returned N5 billion to the government coffers, but was later asked by the government to keep N2 billion to enhance its operations.

According to the statement, the remittance was done in line with the Registrar, Mr Is-haq Oloyede’s avowed commitment to remit wholly, excess funds generated from its operations to the Federal Government.

It added that the board returned the excess to government coffers despite reduction in the cost of ePIN sold to candidates from N5,000 to N3,500 as directed by President Muhammadu Buhari last year.

Over 1.9 million candidates wrote this year’s examination, making it the highest in the history of the board so far.

The statement reads: “Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board(JAMB) has made an interim remittance of N3.5billion to the Federal Government consolidated account for the 2020 expected remittance in line with Oloyede’s avowed commitment to remit wholly, excess funds generated from its operations to the Federal Government.

“It had made the payment of over N3.5 billion to candidates by way of reduction of N1,500 from the cost of each ePIN sold to each candidates as graciously directed by the President totalling over N3.5 billion, bringing the total remittances this year to over N7billion with the assurance to remit more as soon as its operations are concluded and proper audit of its books done.”

It explained that it’s the intention of the board to return to government coffers excess funds made from its operations.

“From the outset, it had been the intention of the present leadership of the board to return to federal coffers, whatever is left unutilised from its operational imperatives.

“The immediate benefit of the move manifested in the reduction by Mr Buhari  of the UTME registration fee payable by candidates from N5,000 to N3,500, which entails the transfer of over N3 billion to candidates and parents/guardians annually via the reduction in the cost of application documents.

“Before the reduction in the cost of application ePINs, the board had remitted over N7 billion in 2017 and replicated same in subsequent years until the gracious action by the Buhari administration’s unprecedented decision to give back to candidates a percentage of the cost of registration.

“To sustain the gesture, the board will continue to come up with innovations on ways to ensure that candidates are provided with world-class services at modest cost, as obtained anywhere in the world,” the statement added.

The Nation