THE Katsina State Government has called for the cancellation of the West Africa Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE) English Language Paper 2 conducted by the West African Examinations Council (WAEC) on Wednesday, May 28.
The state made the call on Saturday, May 31, through its Commissioner for Basic and Secondary Education, Zainab Musa-Musawa.
Musa-Musawa was at the WAEC office in Katsina, the state capital, to deliver a petition containing the state government’s position on the examination. The petition was signed by the Permanent Secretary of the state’s Ministry of Education, Ummukhair Ahmed.
The ICIR reported how students were kept in examination halls in several states in the country by WAEC after the English Language they were to write leaked. Many of the students did not return home until midnight after they were forced to wait to write the examination at night.
The examination body apologised for the delay hours later, pleading with the students, their parents, and other stakeholders to forgive its wrongdoing.
It explained that the delay was part of measures taken to prevent examination malpractice, especially the leakage of question papers.
Addressing reporters at the WAEC office in Katsina, Musa-Musawa said, “Students had to write the examination at night without light until torch lights, handset lights, and security lights were provided.”
She also appealed to schools, parents, and communities to remain patient and await the outcome of the petition.
Nanji is an investigative journalist with the ICIR. She has years of experience in reporting and broadcasting human angle stories, gender inequalities, minority stories, and human rights issues.