The failure to release results for the Friday, 17 April 2026 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination on schedule has sparked a refund dispute between the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board and candidates who were charged while attempting to check scores that had not yet been made available.

JAMB spokesperson Fabian Benjamin confirmed that Registrar Ishaq Oloyede had been in Lagos for an engagement during the period the results were expected, maintaining that result processing is a responsibility too sensitive to be delegated to another official.

"Result is a very sensitive matter. It's not something he can delegate. But he is back now. We are going to release the result soon," Benjamin affirmed.

Candidates who made multiple SMS attempts to access their results during the delay reported incurring charges in the process and subsequently demanded refunds from the board. Benjamin, however, rejected those demands, insisting that the board had not formally announced a result release at the time the checks were made.

"Why would you say they deduct money for something that has not been released? When we release results, we will tell Nigerians. So what refunds are you talking about? If they check, how is that supposed to be our business?" he stated.

The controversy followed a series of missed assurances. Benjamin had posted on X on Saturday that results would be available before midnight. When that deadline passed, he issued a public apology on Sunday, acknowledging the delay.

"Our Chief Executive was unavailable due to an important engagement but would be in the office today, and we assure you that the results will be released later today, surely before nightfall," he disclosed.

"We also extend our heartfelt apologies to those who stayed up waiting for the release. Thank you for your patience and understanding."

A further post on Sunday evening reiterated that the Friday results would be published within hours, with no confirmed release time provided to candidates at the point of the assurance.