By Gabriel Dike
The management of the West African Examinations Council (WAEC) has come under pressure to reopen registration for the school exam.
Daily Sun gathered that some private schools that failed to meet the deadline for registration of students to write the May/June 2023 West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE) are mounting pressure to be allowed to register their candidates.
It was gathered that some private schools that failed to meet the registration deadline wrote the Minister of Education, Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Education, House Committee on Education, and others demanding the closed registration be reopened to enable them register their students.
Following the private schools’ letters, the management of WAEC got calls from top government officials and lawmakers seeking clarifications on the content of the petitions.
Daily Sun learnt that WAEC management defended their position and further explained the opportunities given to schools to register their students for the school exam since October 10th, 2022.
The Federal Ministry of Education and the National Assembly Committee on Education were satisfied with the explanation of the council.
Senior management of the council alleged that the private schools involved were busy shopping for external candidates and wondered how they would come up with their continuous assessment as part of the requirements for WASSCE.
In a swift reaction, National President, the National Association of Proprietors of Private Schools (NAPPS), Chief Yomi Otubela, said he was not aware of any petition and acknowledged that WASSCE had started over a week ago.
A total of 1,621,853 candidates from 20,851 secondary schools registered for the May/June 2023 WASSCE, which would end on Friday, June 23.