The Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) is an examination for prospective undergraduates into Nigerian tertiary institutions. Over the years, Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) has overseen every activity for the exercise. Before a student can be eligible to write the exam, registration at a JAMB accredited Computer Based Test (CBT) centre is mandatory.
However, unlike their peers in other parts of Kwara State and Nigeria, students from Baruten local government do not enjoy the luxury of registering as well as sitting for the exam in their comfort zone. The mandatory exercise has left students at the mercy of suffocating travels to neighboring communities. This has stemmed from the neglect of the Baruten local government despite its reputation as one of the high revenue generating local governments in Kwara.
Amidst untarred road: the dust is thick and the transit is tough, Azeez Nodrata Olashubomi who saw herself furthering her education after secondary school, set out for a challenging journey from Baruten local government of Kwara state to Saki in Oyo in a bid to register for the 2025 UTME examination.
The aftermath of the uncompromising journey on Olashubomi is daring, leading to a mentally and financially draining experience for the 19-year-old lady.
“Travelling down to Saki was not an easy exercise for me. After registration, I still had to travel back for capturing and thumbprinting. I spent almost a day before I was finally able to get captured,” Olushubomi recounted.
“The governments have to do something because the most painful part is that there’s no centre here in Baruten—both for registration and examination,” she continued.
Jibril Fadillah is another JAMB candidate that shared a similar ordeal as Olashubomi. Her experience mirrored the privations encountered by thousands of Baruten students who registered for UTME examinations outside their hometown due to the absence of JAMB CBT accredited centres because of the government’s neglect.
“Our local government cannot provide us with just a single CBT centre. It was difficult and shameful to travel to another area just to register for JAMB. We just have no choice,” Fadillah reflected on the reasons that held her hostage to the suffocating voyage.
From exorbitant fare to uncomfortable stays at the neighboring towns, the plights of Baruten JAMB candidates were extended beyond the travelling travails.
“Before we could get our registration done, it really gave us a tough time but we had to endure. Although travelling to those areas is also part of the experience.”
“The first time we went there, we thought it would be easy. But the transport fare wanted to bring down our heads from our necks. On getting there, we were just like trash in their presence. We were delayed to the extent that we slept there for three days without any preparation to stay even a night.”
Road from Ilesha Baruba in Kwara State to Saki in Oyo State.
Her frustration deepens when she realises how other local governments in Kwara are enjoying functioning JAMB CBT centres while her community struggles to get one despite its buoyant annual allocations.
“We are disappointed that a well-recognized local government like ours cannot raise just a single CBT centre. We are also sure that some people couldn’t proceed with the registrations simply because they couldn’t afford to travel.”
Fattening Incomes, Loose Hopes
According to the Elites Network for Sustainable Development (ENet SuD), a Nigeria civil society organization that promotes good governance, transparency and accountability, Baruten received approximately N3.6 billion in VAT revenue over the period of four years. N661.4 million was received in 2020. N754.5 million was received in 2021. N936.4 million was received in 2022. And ₦1.27 billion was received in 2023.
The body further disclosed that Baruten local government lost nearly the entire share of its Value Added Tax (VAT) revenue between 2020 and 2023 to financially struggling LGAs in Kwara State.
Hence, a total sum of approximately N3.4 billion was deducted by the Kwara State Government (KWSG) as compulsory contribution to other financially struggling LGAs. The deductions being around ₦806.1 million in 2020, ₦660.8 million in 2021, ₦802.4 million in 2022, and ₦1.14 billion in 2023.
Despite this significant financial loss, Baruten received N14.6 billion in income over the same four-year period.
While Baruten LGA allocations were diverted for capital projects: salaries, pensions, and contributions to other LGAs, these efforts have not been enough to address the critical infrastructural gaps in the local government.
Furthermore, a sum of N4.8 billion was earned by Baruten local government as revenue for the 2023 fiscal year, as revealed by a review showing an audited statement issued by the Kwara State government for local governments in 2023 revealed.
Breaking down the figure, the document further showed that N4.5 billion was received as statutory allocation from the federal government. N2.1 million was generated as tax revenue. N91.6 million was recorded as non-tax revenue. While other revenue stood at N149.2 million, bringing the total to N4.8 billion.
Out of the total of N4.8 billion received as revenue, only N272 million was spent on any form of capital expenditure — N43.1 million was spent on construction of roads and bridges, N8.8 million for water distribution network, N20.1 million for sewage/drainage network.
The above figures tell a stark story, as the substantial amount has not translated into tangible developments — Baruten remains one of the most underdeveloped LGAs in the state. The local communities continue to suffer from lack of basic amenities, including electricity, schools, healthcare facilities, and good roads.
Moreso, farmers and artisans also face limited support, and many communities lack access to mobile networks and internet. Additionally, there is not a single JAMB CBT centre in the whole community, making life unbearable for students that need to register for the UTME examination.
During an interview, Mr Musa Idris Buko, an advocate and public affairs analyst, identified leadership failure and systemic mismanagement as the two major factors responsible for the trial facing students in Baruten.
Idris Buko says leadership failure, systemic mismanagement is reason for students’ travails Baruten.
He said: “Two reasons are responsible for Baruten, as large as it is, not having at least a single JAMB CBT centre. Firstly, lack of visionary leadership and representation anchored on the holistic needs of the people. Secondly, unaccountability, non-transparency, and the bastardization of LGAs as a third tier of government.”
Mr Buko who has served as the Assistant General Secretary of Kwara North Youth Ambassadors for Good Governance and LGA Supervisor (Baruten), a youth initiative advocating for growth and advancement, believes that unfair distribution of allocation by the Kwara State government further compounded the travail.
“Citizens don’t know how much comes to the LGA and how it is being spent and on what,” Buko noted.
“Those managing the affairs of the LGA neither give any account of stewardship nor take responsibility for anything. The Kwara State JAAC Law gives room for the funds of wealthy LGAs like Baruten to be used for other LGAs that are even more developed,” Buko concluded with a pause.
More Tales, More Ordeals
“The financial burden is overwhelming. Imagine the transportation costs exceeding the registration fee itself. A round-trip transit from Baruten to Ilorin costs approximately ₦24,000, while the registration fee isn’t even up to N10,000. Many parents cannot afford these expenses and many candidates were left hopeless,” Habibullah Temako, now a 300-Level Law student of Usmanu Danfodiyo University, Sokoto, reflected on the woes he experienced with the JAMB examination before securing an admission into Usmanu Danfodiyo University, Sokoto.
“So sad to say that Baruten, being a large community, lacks access to even a single CBT centre. This results in prospective JAMB candidates facing difficulties in registering for the exam, forcing us to travel long distances to Ilorin or Saki”
One of the few, Temako says many parents can’t afford the transport fare for CBT registration
The struggle of Baruten students with access to JAMB accredited CBT centres is not limited to financial difficulties. The menace has turned what ought to be a smooth academic process into a dangerous adventure. The roads leading out of Baruten were left in deplorable conditions, exposing the student travelers to risk of accidents.
Mohammed Danjuma Woru who sat for UTME exams in 2024 recounted how he travelled from Boriya to a far-off location in Saki in Oyo State instead of a center in Ilorin, the state capital, due to the shabby conditions of the Baruten-to-Ilorin route. With roads in a terrible state, a trip to Ilorin would take an estimated six hours, making the journey even more difficult.
For Danjuma, his concentration now shifted to undergoing another harrowing experience as he anticipates registering for the upcoming exam after he could not secure an admission in 2024.
“For students from low-income families, the financial strain of such travel is crushing.
“The cost of transportation, accommodation, and feeding is overwhelming,” he lamented, adding, that many students are often forced to abandon their education because they can’t bear the financial burdens associated with studying away from home.
Danjuma’s experience is not an isolated struggle but a widespread issue that continues to prevent many young Nigerians from pursuing their academic dreams.
Deplorable condition of road from Ilesha Baruba to Ilorin adding to to students’ sufferings
Expert Proffers Solution
With several schools in the LGA already having computer laboratories, minor upgrades are needed to meet the JAMB’s accreditation standards. Engr. Almajiri Umar Faruk, an advocate of good governance, disclosed to this reporter, insisting that the process is straightforward if only political will exists.
Mr Faruk emphasized that the students of Baruten continue their annual journey to distant cities, hoping that one day, they will have the luxury of basic infrastructure enjoyed by their counterparts in other parts of the state.
“This is not far-fetched. It’s as simple as initiating the project with the urgency that it requires. It will save transportation costs, reduce accident risks, and encourage more students to apply for higher education.”
Farouk calls for political will to save the situation
Despite a belief that the existence of CBT centres will be a game-changer for students in the LGA, his question remains open: will those in power listen? Or will Baruten’s young minds continue to suffer under the weight of a problem that should have been solved years ago?
Baruten Local Government Weighs In
Speaking with this reporter, Mr Idris Woru Yusuf, the Education Secretary of Baruten local government, gives reasons for the absence of JAMB accredited CBT in the LGA.
According to him, the major challenges are the unavailability of enough computers in the existing CBT centres and the difficulty with internet connection. He explained how they brought a temporary internet accessibility during teachers’ recruitment examinations recently held in the local government.
“The existing registration centre is not actually a JAMB registration centre. The hall was built by Hon. Zakari Mohammed, a former House of Representatives member. It contains just 40 computers whereas JAMB requires at least 100 to 200 computers for accreditation.”
By: Mutalib Jibril
© Ripples Nigeria