Due to a protracted delay in the distribution of exam papers, students in areas of Benue State were forced to write the objective portion of their English exam under appalling conditions on Wednesday night, using lanterns and phone torchlights.
The impacted applicants were left waiting for the exam officer to arrive with the objective section after they had already finished the essay portion of the West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE). Exams at certain centers were said to have ended as late as 11:00 p.m. due to the prolonged delay.
An Ogbadibo Local Government Area secondary school student, who asked to remain anonymous, told the Daily Post about the experience: “We waited for hours after writing the essay.” When the exam officer eventually arrived, we were forced to write the objective portion using lanterns and phone lights. It was really trying.
“The exam officer did not provide any significant explanation for the delay,” a second candidate added. He simply arrived, turned in the paperwork, and didn’t explain his tardiness.
Parents were terrified by the late-night exams, and many of them hurried to the schools when they discovered that their kids were still working on papers until the wee hours of the morning.
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“This is a national disgrace,” said a visibly upset parent in Owukpa, who was worried about the youngsters’ safety and welfare. How is it possible for kids to be taking examinations at such a risky hour in the dark, in the bush? Is this the way we wish to teach Nigeria’s future?
The scenario was made much more complex by the local security issues. A village leader in Owukpa claims that because of safety concerns, the exam officer had to be housed overnight: “We had no choice but to let him sleep here.” Since hardly one in this region of the country travels anyplace at that hour, it was already past eleven o’clock. The government must get involved.
According to reports, Ogbadibo was not the only place where the anomalies occurred. There are significant concerns over the integrity of the test procedure in a number of other Benue regions where pupils were not given the objective papers at all and are now required to complete them the next morning.
A teacher from one of the affected schools voiced concerns over
the credibility of the exams: “This kind of irregularity puts the integrity of the examination at risk. We expect WAEC to speak on this and take urgent corrective measures.”
As of the time of filing this report, the West African Examinations Council (WAEC) had yet to issue an official statement regarding the incident.
