The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) has appealed after a court on Friday nullified its minimum age policy around tertiary school admissions.
This is according to JAMB’s Head of Public Affairs and Protocol, Fabian Benjamin.
Benjamin said the board has filed an appeal against the High Court ruling, maintaining that JAMB has requested a stay of execution, meaning the 16-year minimum still stands until the higher courts say otherwise.
The Delta State High Court in Warri had issued an order restraining JAMB from implementing its recent policy requiring a minimum admissible age of 16 years for university admissions in the country pending the hearing and determination of the motion on notice filed against the board.
The judgment, delivered by Justice Anthony O. Akpovi in Warri, followed a lawsuit filed by lawyer John Aikpokpo-Martins.
Aikpokpo-Martins argued that JAMB’s restriction of university admissions to candidates aged 16 and above violated sections 18(1) and 42 of the 1999 Constitution.
The court ruled that the policy discriminates against qualified candidates solely based on age, denying them equal educational opportunities. It declared the policy unconstitutional.
JAMB’s directive of 16 October 2024, which mandated tertiary institutions to admit only candidates who turn 16 by 31 August 2025, was also declared null and void.
