 Director of Public Affairs, John Kapi, has revealed that corrupt Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE) exam officials caught on tape in the Joy News exposé will be blacklist.){kind=link}
The West African Examinations Council (WAEC) Director of Public Affairs, John Kapi, has revealed that corrupt Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE) exam officials caught on tape in the Joy News exposé will be blacklist.
The JoyNews exposé uncovered some officials of the Ghana Education Service (GES) colluding with invigilators to help BECE candidates cheat.
The exposé revealed that the GES official received as little as GH¢60 to allow candidates to cheat in the 2025 Basic Education Certificate Examinations (BECE).
The probe revealed that at the Derby Avenue RC Basic School in Accra, invigilators were promised GH¢60 daily to allow candidates to smuggle mobile phones into examination halls to use artificial intelligence tools to solve questions.
At St. George’s Anglican, the supervisor distributed envelopes containing GH¢400 to each invigilator, and some candidates also made some daily contributions.
The JOYNEWS exposé also unearthed an “Aseda Offertory” which was collected before the start of the final papers at the centre, it was meant to thank invigilators for their assistance in the examination.
According to the report, students contributed at least GH¢5 each in appreciation to be given to the invigilators.
Reacting to the exposé, John Kapi revealed that the WAEC cannot continue to work with individuals who have betrayed the trust placed in them.
Speaking on JoyNews’ PM Express on September 8, WAEC’s John Kapi stated, “These are people who certainly have not proved that they are worthy of the trust that we repose in them”.
“As far as this job is concerned, let me also indicate that when it comes to BECE, most of the decisions are taken by the Ghana Education Service. For example, the selection of supervisors and invigilators is done by the district exams officer,” he explained.
He added, “And so when these issues come up, once the feedback goes to them, we [WAEC] expect that they would react appropriately and ensure that the right action is taken against the people”.
“Yes, that is what we really do. We blacklist them. They no longer take part in any activity that has to do with the West African Examinations Council”, John Kapi boldly emphasised.
Also, Prof Stephen Adei, a renowned educationist, has revealed that for eleven years his school, the Ghana Christian International High School, has stopped using BECE results as an entrance requirement.
According to Prof Stephen Adei, he does not trust the credibility of the Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE).
Speaking on Joy FM’s Super Morning Show, Prof Stephen Adei stated, “For 11 years, Ghana Christian International High School in Accra has not used BECE as an entrance requirement because we don’t trust them”.
He noted that the West African Examinations Council (WAEC) has brought in measures but is still playing catch-up.
Prof Stephen Adei added, “I must say that WAEC has been trying to catch up; there is a catch-up game. It seems the things are entrenched and always the things happen before they try. For example, deploying monitoring teams, some of whom have also been corrupted; arrest and prosecution of only a few; cancellation of results… so they are trying, but there are many against the tide”.
The renowned educationist highlighted that cheating in schools reflects the wider decay in national values.
He added, “What is happening is a reflection of the moral degradation or degeneration in our society. When you see politicians openly bribing their way, giving money in the open to everybody else. When we see galamsey, people say that ‘so long as we get money, even if we poison the whole nation, we don’t care’. Corruption in the public sector, the decadence in the homes, because it’s parents who are sponsoring these”.
“Now the question is why? There are a lot of ills in our society and pressure to perform, and, irrespective of how you do it. So people now have a lot of mansions they cannot explain and cars that their income does not support. And that is going down into the schools to say that once you achieve, irrespective of how, society will recognise you. Then there is a very big problem, which the World Bank in 2016 called schooling without learning,” Prof. Adei warned.
Prof Stephen Adei cautioned that Ghanaian children go through primary school totally illiterate.
He added, “Our primary schools in the public sector; practically, the children go through school totally illiterate. If you go to a place like Togo, by the second year in primary school, every child is literate.
And if it is not addressed, these people will therefore go through and will have a way of getting some certificates anyway. And because of that, most of the children have very poor study habits,” he explained.
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