The lawmakers expressed the concerns when the Registrar and Chief Executive Officer of the agency, Prof Ishaq Oloyede, appeared before them for the 2025 budget defence.

The lawmakers, on Monday, grilled heads of government-owned enterprises on their 2024 budget performance, in relation to revenue generated, remitted and spent.

Standing on the podium to field questions from the committee, Oloyede described JAMB as a revenue-generating agency of government, saying, “We are self-funded in terms of our operation,” but was quick to add that the Federal Government gives grant allocation to the examination body.

Giving a breakdown of the performance of the JAMB’s 2024 budget, Oloyede said the agency remitted N4bn to the Consolidated Revenue Fund while it got a grant of N6bn from the Federal Government.

This did not go down well with the committee as the Chairman, House Committee on Finance, Abiodun Faleke, questioned the rationale for making remittances to government coffers while simultaneously receiving allocations from the government.

“You remitted N4bn and got N6bn from the Federal Government. Why not keep the N4bn and stop the government from funding JAMB?” Faleke asked.

A worried Oloyede battled unsuccessfully to justify yearly budgetary allocation to JAMB, a development that forced Faleke to inquire from the Fiscal Responsibility Commission about the status of the examination body.

Clarifying the controversy, FRC Chairman, Victor Murako, said JAMB’s inability to make a detailed report of its financial presentation was partly informed by its failure to submit an up-to-date audited financial report to the commission.

He said, “JAMB last submitted its annual financial report in 2022. If they had submitted an up-to-date financial report, we would have been in a better position to advise the committee.”

A member of the committee, Amobi Ogah, noted that JAMB as a partially-funded agency ought to remit 40 per cent of its total Internally Generated Revenue annually to the government.

Ogah, who represents Isuikwuato/Umunneochi Federal Constituency, Abia State, noted that with the presentation made by Prof Oloyede, JAMB had a net liability of about N3.6bn.

“There is no basis to spend what you generate. In your submission, under miscellaneous sources, you projected revenue generation of over N1.1bn more than your main source of revenue. Can you tell us what constitutes these miscellaneous sources?” Ogah asked.

Also speaking, Senator Adams Oshiomhole flayed the agency for the huge amount it spent on meals and refreshments in 2024.

“You spent N1.1bn on meals and refreshments. Are you being freely fed by the government? What this means is that you are spending the money you generate from poor students, many of them orphans.

“You also spent N850m on security, cleaning and fumigation in 2024. What did you fumigate? Is it mosquitoes that took all this money? “ Oshiomhole asked

The former Edo State Governor also slammed JAMB for spending N600m on local travels even as he called on Oloyede to justify the N6.5bn on local training.

“Another N6.5bn for training without details of those training. From your records, JAMB intends to spend N1bn on housing. Is the Federal Government still providing housing? What happened to (Olusegun) Obasanjo’s monetisation policy?

“There is N120m for office equipment. What happened to the ones you procured last year,” Oshiomhole further asked.

In his contribution, a member representing Uyo/Urua Nsit/Atai Astan Federal Constituency, Akwa Ibom State, Mark Esset, called on the committee to recommend to the Federal Government to stop allocation to JAMB.

“If JAMB can spend N1.1bn on food alone, there is no need for the Federal Government to give them grants. They can be self-funding,” he said.

On his part, Edo lawmaker and member of the All Progressives Congress, Billy Osawaru, urged the committee not to entertain any plea from Prof Oloyede, saying, “This is someone who is trying to bamboozle the committee. How can he come for budget defence without the complete documents.”

In his ruling, the Chairman, Senate Committee on Finance, Sani Musa, urged Oloyede to prepare a detailed report of the financial status of JAMB ahead of his appearance to defend the agency’s 2025 budget.