Anambra State Governor, Prof. Charles Soludo, has approved a three-month psychotherapy session for 19-year-old Mmesoma Ejikeme, who forged her Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) results.
Ngozi Chuma-Udeh, the state commissioner for education, announced this at a briefing in Awka, the state capital, on Thursday, July 21, 2023.
Psychotherapy helps people to change behaviours, thoughts, and emotions that are capable of causing problems or distress.
Mmesoma has been in the news for claiming she scored 362 in the 2023 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME).
The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) had revealed that she actually scored 249 in the exam.
The student of Anglican Girls Secondary School in Nnewi, Anambra, initially countered the claim but later admitted that she forged the result.
Amid the ensuing drama, JAMB withdrew her result and suspended her from taking the exam for three years.
Speaking on the development, the commissioner said Soludo’s directive followed recommendation of the committee constituted by the state government to investigate the case.
Chuma-Udeh said the state will meet with the management of JAMB to “reconsider one or two things” for the student after the psychotherapy.
“We considered what Mmesoma did as ‘juvenile delinquency’ to which any child could fall victim. So, we are not going to throw the baby away with the bath water,” she said.
“She is now under a psychotherapist counsellor who will take her on therapy for three months after which the state government will appeal to JAMB management on behalf of her to reconsider one or two things.”
✍️ Temitope Hassan