Examination Body Addresses Candidate Concerns After Delays
The West African Examinations Council (WAEC) has moved to calm anxieties among candidates who sat for the 2026 Computer-Based West African Senior School Certificate Examination (CB-WASSCE), following widely reported disruptions during the Mathematics and Agricultural Science papers. In a meeting with student leaders, the council’s top official in Nigeria confirmed that the technical and logistical problems encountered will not compromise the integrity of the results.
According to a report from Daily Trust, candidates in several states were forced to write their examinations late into the evening after question papers and answer booklets arrived behind schedule. WAEC later attributed the delays to a combination of security concerns, logistical hurdles, and the death of some staff members in Gombe, which disrupted operations across three states.
Official Assurance on Results
Dr. Amos Josiah Dangut, WAEC’s Head of National Office, provided the reassurance during a visit from the National Executive of the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS), led by its General Secretary, Comrade Oladimeji Usman. “We have standard procedures for addressing every challenge. Whatever glitches occurred will not affect candidates’ performance because we have mechanisms to detect and correct them,” Dangut stated.
He reiterated that the council remains on track to release the 2026 CB-WASSCE results on August 3, a date that now stands just under a month away. However, Dangut issued a warning to stakeholders with outstanding financial obligations: candidates sponsored by indebted parties could face delays in receiving their results until those payments are cleared. “We appeal to all indebted stakeholders to settle their obligations within the next 10 days so that no candidate will be disadvantaged,” he said.
Technology and Malpractice Reduction
Dangut emphasised that ongoing reforms and the deployment of technology have led to a significant drop in examination malpractice, despite resistance from individuals whose interests are affected by the changes. He highlighted the council’s investment in a cyber surveillance centre that monitors examinations in real time. “We now have a cyber monitoring centre that detects every area where malpractice is taking place and alerts the council immediately. This year’s examination recorded a significant reduction in malpractice, and there was no leakage of examination papers,” he explained.
Student Leaders Acknowledge Progress
Comrade Usman, speaking on behalf of NANS, commended WAEC for its responsiveness and urged the council to continue prioritising student welfare. Reflecting on the late-night examination sessions, he noted that after the student body raised the issue with WAEC, they received explanations for the incident. “The way forward has been charted, and there are positive results. During the last examinations, we had some students who wrote exams late at night and then we put a call across to your office and there were some reasons that were given to us that led to that ugly incident. And then we have no report from our students of that ugly incident,” Usman said, suggesting that the matter had been resolved to the satisfaction of the student body.
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Looking Ahead
With the results release date confirmed for August 3, WAEC’s message to candidates is clear: the operational setbacks experienced during the exam will not be reflected in their final scores. The council’s emphasis on its cyber monitoring capabilities and its call for debt settlement signal a dual focus on maintaining examination integrity and ensuring that all stakeholders meet their financial responsibilities. For the hundreds of thousands of students awaiting their results, the assurance from the examination body’s leadership offers a measure of certainty after a testing period.