We’ll remain non-political, says WAEC

The West African Examinations Council(WAEC) has said it will not allow itself to be dragged into partisan politics at any level.

The head of National Office, WAEC Nigeria, Mr Patrick Areghan, made this clear in a statement made available by the head of public affairs unit of the organisation, Mrs Moyosola Adesina.

Areghan expressed disappointment in the manner some media organisations alleged WAEC in the recent times to have attempted to pervert the course of justice by allegedly “conniving with some highly placed persons whose electoral victories in the last national elections are being challenged in court by their opponents” without supporting their reports with facts.

Areghan noted that part of the reports was an allegation that “top WAEC Directors at the Yaba office received huge sums of money in several tranches to conceal and doctor information on WAEC records concerning some defendants and that the organisation has been complicit in denying all litigants access to examination records in proof of their cases in court.

He said all those claims including that, “an investigative agency had gone to Ghana and completed investigations on a particular matter, while efforts to do the same in Nigeria were blocked by some WAEC officials” were all fabricated news by the authors.

Areghan declared that WAEC would have ignored all the allegations since they are baseless and malicious, but came up with a reaction for the purpose of setting the record straight and do some enlightenment in the interest of the public and for the sake of the country’s education sector.

The WAEC boss explained that the council, with a clear mandate of conducting examinations for SS3 students and awarding certificates to them, had never, in its 71 years’ history, engaged in unethical practice and would not do so.

He said WAEC had been appearing in court for years, on invitations to confirm the authenticity of its results, certificates, or documents tendered by some litigants, and would not hesitate to do the same once called upon irrespective of persons involved.

He explained further that it’s embarrassing that some media organisations could be ignorant that WAEC Ghana cannot answer for Nigeria WAEC on issues that concern Nigeria and vice versa as two of them just like three other WAEC member countries keep separate record of results, certificates and documents of their candidates either in the school-based or external examinations.

“Or how do we explain the claim by the media that some investigators from Nigeria went to Ghana for investigations on a matter and had concluded investigations but only to be blocked by WAEC Nigeria when in actual fact no member country has the results, records, and documents of other member countries in its possession” he queried.

He said, “That is why it is laughable and insulting to say that WAEC officials collected bribes to pervert the course of justice on the matter in question or any other in Nigeria.”

While also declaring that candidates can have both results and certificates but may lose one or both due to theft, fire, flood and so forth, no candidate can claim to have a certificate without result.

Even at that, he added, candidates with lost or damaged certificates can either request for result confirmation or certificates reprinted as the case may be only when proof of ownership is provided.

“So, as an orgnisation, we shall remain apolitical and always say the truth, no matter the person involved.

“It is only that we are imploring the media not to allow themselves to be used by politicians for their selfish gains. When they are in doubt, they should always come forward and follow the procedure to get their facts before going to press.

“Going to the public with fake news is unethical and will not do the country and its people any good rather tarnishing the image of the media profession and the country.

“So, don’t distract WAEC from its mandate for the sake of the country.”