By Daniel Otera
The West African Examinations Council (WAEC) has broken its silence on the widespread criticism trailing the conduct of this year’s English Language paper, which saw some candidates in Taraba, Benue, and parts of Delta State sitting for their exams late into the night using torchlights and lanterns.
In a statement issued on Thursday, WAEC attributed the disruption to heightened efforts to prevent the leakage of question papers, a challenge the council described as “significant” during the May 28 exam.
“While maintaining the integrity and security of our examination, we faced considerable challenges primarily due to our major aim of preventing leakage of any paper,” said Moyosola Adesina, Acting Head of Public Affairs at WAEC.
“While we successfully achieved our objective, it inadvertently impacted the timeliness and seamless conduct of the examination.”
Students across affected states reportedly sat for the English Language Paper 2 hours behind schedule. In some centres in Taraba and Benue, candidates began writing as late as 9:00 p.m., prompting outrage from parents and education observers.
Several videos and photos circulated on social media showed exhausted students using their phone torches to illuminate dark classrooms, as power outages compounded the delays.
WAEC acknowledged the poor conditions under which the examinations were conducted and issued a public apology to affected students, schools, and parents.
“We recognise the importance of timely conduct of examinations and the impact of this decision on the candidates, their schools and parents, and we sincerely apologise for any inconveniences caused,” the statement read.
According to the West African Examinations Council (WAEC), over 1.9 million candidates from across Nigeria registered for the 2025 West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE), with more than 450,000 estimated to be from the northern states alone.
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WAEC said it encountered “logistical hurdles, security concerns and sociocultural factors” that negatively influenced operations. It noted that the council is now collaborating with security agencies to improve operational efficiency and prevent recurrence.
Earlier Warnings Ignored?
This is not the first time candidates have had to write exams under questionable conditions. Earlier in May, similar scenes were reported from Unity Secondary School in Asaba, Delta State, where students sat for papers in the dark under the supervision of state officials. That incident drew condemnation from the Federal Ministry of Education.
Dr Tunji Alausa, Minister of State for Education, had warned that such conditions were “completely unacceptable” and promised a probe into the matter.
Despite that warning, the situation repeated itself in Taraba and Benue, triggering renewed concerns about systemic failures in the coordination of Nigeria’s high-stakes secondary school exit exams.
