Legal practitioner John Aikpokpo-Martins has issued a stern warning to the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) over plans to conduct a special screening for underage candidates seeking admission into tertiary institutions for the 2025/2026 academic session.
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In a letter addressed to Prof. Ishaq Oloyede, the Registrar of JAMB, and copied to the Deputy Chief Registrar of the Court of Appeal, Asaba, Aikpokpo-Martins cautioned that any attempt to execute the special screening scheduled for September 22–26, 2025, would amount to interference with the subject matter of a pending appeal at the Court of Appeal (Appeal No. CA/AS/246/2025).
The warning follows a statement by the JAMB Registrar announcing a review of eligibility for over 500 candidates below 16 years of age while declaring that about 50,000 candidates who sat for the JAMB examination did not meet the age requirement and would not be eligible for the screening.
Aikpokpo-Martins reminded the JAMB Registrar that, by the judgment of the Delta State High Court delivered on February 27, 2025, the board is perpetually restrained from denying admission solely on the basis of age. He stressed that the pending appeal does not empower JAMB to alter the status quo established by the High Court judgment.
“The refusal to grant admission to about 40,000 candidates under the guise of being underage appears to be an attempt to render nugatory the judgment of the Delta State High Court,” the letter stated.
Aikpokpo-Martins described the proposed screening as a “smokescreen” intended to circumvent the court’s order and called on the Registrar to obey the High Court judgment without discretion regarding age restrictions.
He further warned that failure to comply could result in an application to the court to set aside the exercise and potentially commit the Registrar for willful disobedience of court orders.
The letter cited the Court of Appeal ruling in Okomu Oil Palm Co. v. Tajudeen (2016) 3 NWLR Part 1499, emphasizing the need to maintain the sanctity of judicial process and to uphold the rule of law, stressing that self-help during the pendency of litigation is not permissible.
LETTER TO JAMBAikpokpo-Martins concluded: “This sort of brazen disregard for the sanctity of judicial process and interference with the subject matter of a pending case by a very high public officer is terribly appalling and a threat to the rule of law. Sir, you have been put on notice.”
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