NECO delists Katsina, Kebbi, Oyo schools over cheating

The National Examinations Council has delisted three schools in Katsina, Kebbi and Oyo states for two years over their alleged involvement in mass cheating.

The council said on Tuesday it recorded cases of examination malpractices such as “collusion by supervisors, teachers and school administrators, who ought to be part of the army in fighting the scourge.”

In its recent June and July 2019 Senior Secondary Certificate Examination, the council put the cases of malpractices at over 40,000.

The acting NECO Registrar, Mr Abubakar Gana, disclosed these in Abuja in a brief submitted to the Minister of Education, Adamu Adamu, on the mandate and achievements of the council between May 2018 and September 2019.

The registrar called on the government to prioritise security of examinations and officials just as the Independent National Electoral Commission is provided with security during elections.

Gana noted that NECO acquired 8,000 biometric verification machines before the conduct of its 2019 SSCE, adding that the council needed more biometric verification devices to serve its over 16,000 centres.

He said, “The Council successfully conducted the 2019 June/July SSCE with a total of 1,163,194 candidates registered for the examination. A total of 40,630 candidates were involved in the various forms of malpractice; 18 supervisors were blacklisted for poor supervision, aiding, abetting and connivance with candidates to perpetrate examination malpractice.

“Three schools, one each in Katsina, Kebbi and Oyo states, were de-recognised for two years for their involvement in collusion and mass cheating.”

The registrar said the council had tried to block financial leakages and increased prudence in the management of resources.