From Ndubuisi Orji, Abuja
The House of Representatives, Committee on Basic Examination, on Monday, grilled the West African Examination Council (WAEC) Head of Nigeria Office, Amos Dagnut, over the conduct of the West Africa Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE) at midnight in different parts of the country.
The lawmakers, who were furious that the examination body traumatized the candidates demanded a report on the alleged leak of the examination that resulted to WAEC conducting the examination in some states at midnight, as well as the examination body’s guidelines within 24 hours.
The Chairman of the committee, Oboku Oforji , at the commencement of the investigative hearing, said Nigerians especially the parents of the affected candidates deserve an explanation from WAEC.
Oforji said “this committee wants to know, parents and Nigerians want to know, we owe them a duty of care, and to whom much is given, much is expected; monies were appropriated by Parliament for the conduct of these examinations.
“We are not trying to kill a fly with a sledge hammer as a committee, but like I said in the last meeting, we need to know the immediate and remote causes of the woeful conduct of the examinations, and in doing this we may forestall a future occurrence.”
The Head of Nigeria Office ( HNO), WAEC, Amos Dagnut, while addressing the lawmakers, blamed the development on logistics, which arose, following the printing of question paper had earlier leaked.
Dagnut told lawmakers that though the examination was originally scheduled for 2pm, it eventually started at 7pm in some of the areas affected, noting that teachers, invigilators, supervisors, as well as parents provided lights for the candidates.
The WAEC boss, who explained that the examination body only prints 50 percent of its question papers and outsource the other 50 percent, said it relies on road transport to convey the papers to the various centres.
Dagnut, while responding the lawmakers concern that examination papers are conveyed by tricycles, noted “regarding the use of Keke, there are other places you don’t have keke, but motor bikes, so it depends on the available means of transport.”
However, the WAEC, who failed to disclose the sum contract for the outsourcing of the printing of the 50 percent of the examination papers, saying he does not know it off hand, also declined to reveal the procedure for dealing with cases of compromise.