Rivers denies owing WAEC

TONY JOHN, Port Harcourt

Rivers State Ministry of Education has denied the allegation that it has not met its financial obligations for students with the West African Examination Council (WAEC), leading to withholding the last results by the examination body.

State Commissioner for Education, Professor Kaniye Ebeku, made the denial yesterday, following a report published in a local tabloid in Rivers, alleging that the state government owed WAEC.

Ebeku said the report was published by elements that were bent on painting the Government of Rivers State and the Ministry of Education black, stressing that fees for students in public schools were paid before the examination started as promised.

He stated that it was a false and malicious publication authored by members of an opposition political party in the State.

The state government threatened that the writers of the report would have their day in court, so that others like them would learn not to spread fake news again.

Professor Ebeku added that WAEC had also denied withholding results of students in public schools in Rivers State, stating that the claim could be verified from the council.

The Education Commissioner said: “For the avoidance of doubts, the Government of Rivers State long ago paid the WAEC examination fees for all students in the public schools in the State, as promised. And this was well before the examination started. WAEC will confirm this.

“The WAEC has denied mass withholding of results of students in public schools in Rivers State. Inquiries made to WAEC shows that results have been published, including results of students in public schools in Rivers State.

“There is no such thing as mass withholding of results of students who wrote the last WAEC examination in public schools in the State for failure of Rivers State Government to meet its financial obligations.

“In fact, candidates who wrote the last WAEC examination in public schools in the State are accessing their results, contrary to the false publication. Inquiries made to WAEC shows that network problem is the reason some candidates nationwide may not have been able to access their results”, the commissioner stressed.

He, however, urged members of the public, particularly parents and guardians, to discountenance the publication with its misleading content.