?vow to address national embarrassment

Members of the House of Representatives Committee on Basic Education and Examination Bodies on Friday rejected a delegation from the West African Examinations Council (WAEC), insisting that the Head of National Office must appear in person over anomalies reported in the ongoing examinations.

The committee issued a 24-hour ultimatum to the examination body to comply with its summons, after WAEC failed to honour the initial invitation.

Leading the WAEC delegation was Senior Assistant Registrar and Zonal Coordinator, Ambrose Okelezo, who explained that the Head of National Office was unavailable as he was supervising the printing of examination materials?a task expected to end on Saturday.

At the start of the session, Committee Chairman Oforji Oboku apologised to parents and Nigerians for the ?unpalatable and embarrassing incidents? witnessed during the current examination exercise nationwide.

He said, ?In Jalingo, it was recorded that the examination started at about midnight. Unfortunately, these incidents happened; the emotional trauma these children went through can best be imagined. As stakeholders, we owe the public a duty of care, and we must not leave any stone unturned to prevent a future occurrence.

?However, this Committee demands to know the immediate and remote causes of this anomaly, which is why this invitation is urgent. Parents and Nigerians need to know why their children?s lives were endangered.

?It is expected that WAEC as a body lives up to its responsibility of organising these examinations with high standards, diligence and proper duty of care.

?There must not be an excuse, after all, monies were being appropriated for the conduct of the examinations by the Parliament. As a committee, we demand explanations; we do not need to cry over a split milk, but as I said earlier, measures must be put in place to make sure there is no future occurrence.?

Responding to the Senior Assistant Registrar/Zonal Coordinator, Mr. Ambrose Okelezo disclosed that the Head of National Office has held a meeting with the Registrar and Heads of other National Offices to address the ugly situation and nap out strategies to forestall future occurrence.

He said the assignment being conducted by the Head of National is expected to be concluded on Saturday, adding that he will be free and available after that and has ?pleaded with the Chairman and Committee to please permit him to appear on Monday to give a full detail of the incident to the House. So he is not here right now, and I am presenting him.?

On the conduct of the exams and the challenges, he said: ?Yes, the West African Examinations Council acknowledges the challenges currently being faced during the conduct of the School Candidates 2025 examination, including the delay in the timely conduct of English Language Paper 2??

However, members of the committee were not pleased with the brief explanation and refused his continued appearance.

A member of the committee, Awaji Nnombek Abiante (PDP-Rivers) interjected, saying ?Mr. Chairman, Sir, he has just told us that he is not competent to speak to us. So what else is he doing? He is not competent to speak to us, he said, the director, the head of whatever, will be here on Monday.

?So, what other thing is he saying? He is not competent to speak to us. He is not competent to speak to us? Because there are a myriad of issues, ranging from the fact that people in my village, where government has never remembered, there is no house in my village that has electricity, had to write exams up to 12a.m, 1a.m, and they were calling me from the village, to the issue that your logistics failed, you will leave your question papers in Keke, commercial driver, and we?re using it to carry passengers from Rumukuta to Rumuala.

?You have failed, I don?t know why, for a country of over 200 million Nigerians, the government cannot have competent hands to handle simple issues. I don?t know where they got this incompetence from. It?s either a glitch from INEC, a glitch from JAMB, this one, they will call it a glitch from WAEC, nonsense! You?re not competent to resign and go. You?re not competent to speak to us today. I don?t want to get angry, because I?m not talking to your office.

?I will speak to him, if it is Monday that you agree, I will be here and I will speak to him. I had my exams, it was not like this, it has never been this bad, and it is under the same condition that you are proposing to have composite computer-based tests.

?How many schools in this country have computers for their students? How many schools? How many schools in this country, Nigeria, have computers? Talkless of even knowing what to do with the computer. He doesn?t sit down with great news for everybody and come and explain it to you. Horrible ambience. Horrible ambience.?

Though the Committee Chairman tried to calm nerves, the Lawmakers maintained that the embattled WAEC helmsman cannot dictate nor impose a date for his appearance on the Committee.

The Chairman said, ?Calling for this meeting is very, very important at this point, because Nigerians are interested in what led to this very unfortunate incident, because it has never been so bad. Nigerians are interested.

?And all of us are aware of the trauma our children went through. But we should not be emotional. I want to clear the indulgence of the honourable members of this Committee, we should not be emotional. The issues are very, very painful, but we should look at the issues and tackle these issues.

?But I want to clear your indulgence that let us not be emotional, because the head of WAEC is coming on Monday. That is what the letter is saying.

?However, looking at the circumstances that have led to this, and the importance of the exam that you have today, yesterday was the day you took English on Wednesday, the day that this thing hit. So, I think that this week you have very important papers. Very, very important papers. We are aware of that.

?But we also believe that the reason why we summoned the head of WAEC and his team is because of the importance we attach to this very important exam. So that is why. So, the Committee will look at whether we will proceed with you, you and your team, or we will make a decision. Because this was well communicated to the head of WAEC and his team.?

In his contribution, Pascal Agbodike said, ?Whatever thing that is worth doing, is worth doing well. Who we are seeing here are the representatives of their head. And the head of WAEC has already written to us that he himself will appear in person on Monday. If that date is acceptable by us, maybe no need talking to the proxy. Let us wait on that date so that we can discuss one-on-one. This is an important issue.

?Education is one of the most important pillars, the basis for the development of this country. And we are not joking with education. So it is our duty, a collective responsibility, to tackle it so that such will not repeat.

?Because I know most of those, for you to participate in the WAEC exam, there are certain fees that those candidates have paid for them to be qualified to sit for the exams. So, that would have served as something that they would have used, among other provisions, to give us a proper exam well conducted. But let us, as suggested, adjourn the meeting for the next time.?

Also infuriated by the poor conduct of the ongoing SSCE across the country, Hon. Billy Osawaru said: ?I am sure listening to my colleagues, we already understand the mood and what it looks like we need. Like Honourable Pascal just said, what is worth doing is worth doing well.

?This national embarrassment, we are the people?s representatives. I don?t think this is a case we are going to take lightly. If not, we will be seen to be culpable. So, we have to be very careful. Since he has come, or they have come, let?s take it that they were sent on errands to deliver the message that the right person will show up on Monday.

?What we should be discussing now, Mr. Chairman, is if this committee accepts that Monday, or wants to request for another date, it is not to overflow this issue of whether we want to hear them or not, as parliamentary procedures, we know we don?t want to hear them. We know, and we know we cannot hear them.

?They are not the decision-makers here. If we do that today, then that will be repetitive. When the Registrar or chairman, whatever his name is, comes back here. They can?t help us. They cannot help us right now.?

He therefore made a motion which was seconded by Hon. Abiante, saying, ?Mr. Chairman, my honourable colleagues, I move that we cannot entertain the WAEC staff in front of us today until the head of WAEC comes before us, based on what the Committee decides today as a date. Mr. Chairman, I so move.?

The Committee, however, gave the Head of National Office till 2.00 pm on Monday to appear before the committee. (The Nation)

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