‘My Child Returned Home 10 PM’ – Parent Laments As WAEC Candidates Write Papers At Night

The ongoing West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE) has been disrupted by delays in some centres, forcing candidates to write papers late into the night.

Naija News understands that the examination is being conducted by the West African Examinations Council (WAEC).

The development has sparked concern among parents, school administrators and education stakeholders, especially as similar incidents were recorded last year when some candidates reportedly wrote examinations close to midnight.

According to Vanguard, checks across some centres in Lagos, particularly on Lagos Island and in the Lekki axis, showed that the delays became more pronounced this week.

On Monday, Physics Papers 2 and 1, scheduled to be held between 2 pm and 5 pm, reportedly did not start on time.

Some candidates were said to have written the second paper around 8 p.m.

On Wednesday, candidates who sat for General Mathematics also experienced major delays.

The essay paper, scheduled for 9:30 am to noon, and the objective paper, scheduled for 3 pm to 4:30 pm, were reportedly concluded around 10 pm.

‘Delays Affect Candidates Psychologically’

A school principal, who spoke anonymously with Vanguard, expressed disappointment over the recurring disruptions.

“Why are we experiencing this again after what happened last year? Apart from the security concerns in the country, these delays have psychological effects on candidates. Imagine preparing for an examination scheduled for noon and eventually writing it at 7 p.m. or later,” the principal said.

He added that many stakeholders expected WAEC to have addressed the problem after last year’s experience.

A parent in Lekki said the delays were affecting students’ welfare and raising concerns about examination management.

“My child returned home around 10 p.m. on Wednesday. We expected lessons would have been learned from last year’s experience, but the same issues are happening again,” the parent said.

WAEC Official Confirms Hitches

A WAEC official, who was not authorised to speak publicly, confirmed that the council was aware of the challenges.

“Yes, we are aware of some hitches due to unforeseen circumstances. However, we are doing everything possible to address the issues, and hopefully, things will return to normal soon,” the official said.

WAEC had yet to issue an official public statement on the delays as of the time of filing this report.