WAEC exam malpractices: Court grants NGO’s request

Justice E. S. Chukwu of the Federal High Court, Abuja held that WAEC should make available documents and information relating to names of invigilators and supervisors reported to state ministries of education for aiding and abetting of examination malpractice in May/June 2013 and 2014 examinations and November/December, 2014 examinations.WAEC is also expected to make available […]

Justice E. S. Chukwu of the Federal High Court, Abuja held that WAEC should make available documents and information relating to names of invigilators and supervisors reported to state ministries of education for aiding and abetting of examination malpractice in May/June 2013 and 2014 examinations and November/December, 2014 examinations.
WAEC is also expected to make available names of schools indicted for mass cheating in May/June 2014 and November/December 2014 exams and barred as WAEC exams centres.
Exam Ethics in a statement had written a letter dated 12th May, 2015 to WAEC in line with the Freedom of Information Act (FOI) requesting the council to provide certain information regarding exam malpractices in May/June 2013 and November/December 2014 WAEC exams.
The request by the non-governmental organisation was sequel to a press conference by WAEC where it announced sanctions against examination administrators who aided and abetted malpractice without providing the names of those sanctioned.
Exam Ethics proceeded to the court when WAEC did not respond to the request within the 7 days statutorily stipulated in the Freedom of Information Act.
The Chairman of Exam Ethics Marshals International, Mr. Ike Onyechere, MFR, in an affidavit deposed at the Federal High Court on 2nd June, 2015 stated that non-disclosure of names of indicted supervisors and invigilators made it possible for such indicted persons to continue to participate in administration of public examinations.
He said in the affidavit that this measure compromised the integrity of public examinations.
The names of candidates barred from sitting for WAEC examinations because of involvement in exam fraud in November/December WAEC 2014 examination and reports of various states ministries of education on their employees involved in exam malpractices in Nov/Dec 2014 WAEC exams were reported in daily newspapers of 8 May, 2010.
The court adjourned the case to July 15, 2015 for hearing of the substantive application.