The management of the West African Examinations Council was reprimanded by the House of Representatives Committee on Basic Education and Examination Bodies on Monday for the extensive anomalies and operational shortcomings that marked the 2025 Senior Secondary School Certificate Examination.
Lawmakers questioned Dr. Amos Dangut, the head of WAEC, Nigeria, during an investigative hearing in the National Assembly, claiming that systemic flaws had damaged public confidence in Nigeria’s examination procedure.
Following several complaints of anomalies and operational breakdowns during the ongoing statewide examination, the body has come under heavy fire.
Parents, students, and education specialists are among the stakeholders who have voiced serious worries about the exam’s integrity being compromised by bad management, security flaws, and logistical errors.
Calls for immediate adjustments to regain public trust and guarantee an impartial, open examination system have been triggered by these issues.
The committee chairman, Oforji Oboku (PDP, Yenagoa/Opokuma Federal Constituency, Bayelsa State), opened the meeting by scathingly criticizing the council’s performance and praising his colleagues for making the oversight meeting a priority even though the parliament was not in session.
This meeting is a reflection of our shared determination to give our testing system back its respect and legitimacy.
“On behalf of this committee, I offer an unreserved apology to Nigerian parents, guardians, and candidates who suffered the chaos of the last examination cycle. We are determined to ensuring this never happens again,” he said.
Recalling a previous meeting with WAEC on May 30, Oboku called the disclosures that students in many centers were forced to take the test in harsh circumstances—including late-night sessions with torchlight—appalling.
It is intolerable that kids are taking tests in the dark at 11 p.m. in 2025. This is a leadership failure as well as a logistical one,” he continued.
The Bayelsa legislator insisted on identifying the core cause of the council’s inefficiency, even though he stressed that the committee’s investigation was not a witch hunt.
“We need to determine the root causes of these recurring failures, take decisive action to address them, and hold those accountable,” he said.
Lawmakers expressed their annoyance at what they characterized as WAEC’s routine carelessness and lack of planning, which caused the session to become boisterous.
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