Education stakeholders have criticised WAEC over sudden changes to the 2025 WASSCE results, calling for an independent probe after the pass rate jumped from 38% to 63% due to a “technical glitch.”
Stakeholders in Nigeria’s education sector have criticised the West African Examinations Council (WAEC) over the abrupt revision of the 2025 West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE) results, calling for an independent probe and a restructuring of the council’s management.
Also read: WAEC Under Fire: Reps slam council over widespread failures
The backlash follows WAEC’s announcement on July 4 that only 38.32% of its 1,969,313 candidates passed five subjects, including English and Mathematics.
The mass failure drew public outrage, prompting WAEC to later withdraw the results, citing technical issues.
On August 10, WAEC reopened its results portal, revealing that 62.96% of candidates had now secured the required credits—a dramatic increase attributed to “serialisation issues” in subjects such as Mathematics, English, Biology, and Economics.
Ike Onyechere, Founder of Exam Ethics Marshall International, described the incident as “a national disaster,” questioning the credibility of Nigeria’s education assessment system and demanding urgent government intervention.
Teachers and parents echoed the concerns. Oluwaseun Omotubora, a teacher, criticised WAEC’s handling of the matter, saying the council should have recalled affected answer sheets or organised fresh exams.
Parents like Ifeoluwa Atteh and Chidinma Nwafor warned that the inconsistency could erode public trust, while Nathaniel Adamu linked the glitches to inadequate education funding.
Many candidates welcomed the revised results but acknowledged the credibility concerns. Chisom Jonah saw her English grade improve from D7 to C6, enabling her to pursue university admission.
Similarly, Favour Akindele’s Mathematics result improved from D7 to C4, though she questioned WAEC’s reliability.
Also read: WAEC explains late English exam as anti-leakage measure, apologizes for inconvenience
With mounting pressure from education advocates, parents, and candidates, calls for a full investigation into the incident continue to intensify.
Quadri Olaitan is a journalist and contributor to Freelanews.com, covering news, public affairs, and human-interest stories.
