Why FG should reconsider cancellation of WASSCE

Going by the utterances of the Minister of  Education, Adamu Adamu, that it is preferable for students to lose one full session than for the students to be exposed to COVID-19, and that WAEC cannot possibly determine the date of resumption of school activities for the country, it is obvious that for most agents of the government, displacement and misplacement of priorities has always been the order of the day regarding their duties of protection of lives and properties as well as provision of basic amenities, and none in the least suggestion cum recommendation of guidance and guidelines to the populace in the face of emergencies, similar to that of the pandemic ravaging the world at the moment.

From all indications, a majority of those stocks today either do not have a clear understanding of the situations at hand or are deliberately set out to impoverish the people till same resort to committing suicide out of frustration. To every reasonable critic, however, it is pertinent that we begin to raise some objective and cogent questions about the sincerity of those in government to the situation at hand, in order for us to be able to begin to put things in the right perspectives.

In my opinion, every reasonable mind should at least query how our “so-called leaders” could come up with uncertain pronouncements such as ease of lockdown with regard to specific areas of interest (places of worship and academic institutions, among others, in recent times), only for them to turn back within a short period of time to reverse such decisions without recourse to the people’s sustenance, survival and future. This, without mincing words, is tantamount to playing with the people’s feelings and intelligence. This also portrays them as being highly insensitive to the people’s plights. Other issues begging conviction include the rationale for government’s decision to proceed on Edo and Ondo states gubernatorial elections in spite of the situation on ground, while that gives the impression that education of our children takes little or no priority in their minds and agenda.

 If elections are worth risking peoples’ lives for, then, why not education? Some statistics indicated that about 1,590,173 sat for West African Senior Secondary Certificate Examination in 2019 in Nigeria. In 2020 however, this number will probably be a little higher than that, and going by the minister’s pronouncement nonetheless, there is no examination for those innocent children this year (2020) in view of COVID-19. Edo State reportedly has 2,210,534 registered voters, while Ondo State is said to have about 1,822,346. Both states combined have approximately 4,032,880 registered voters. If elections are to be held in both states this year in spite of the pandemic, why not the conduct of WAEC tests?

Arguably, WAEC came up with a tentative date of August 4 to September 5 for the 2020 WASSCE, while deliberations are still ongoing. But then, what stops the Federal Government from calling WAEC Nigeria to order? Fine, WAEC should have carried the governments of all its member countries along in its decisions, yet it is glaring WAEC’s pronouncement was never made in vacuum as Federal Government of Nigeria had already suggested August 3, 2020 for resumption of revision classes for transiting classes. So, what’s the whole brouhaha about? Has it ever been considered that approximately 35 per cent of those writing the WAEC examination are Arts and prospective Law students who offer Literature in English, and that there are well over 40 per cent of others who are offering Yoruba Literature at the same examination? These categories of students have been studying texts prescribed for 2016-2020 (which ends this year) in the past three years (SS1-3). If one session is skipped as now being suggested, does it then mean those students would afterwards be merged with those who would be writing WASSCE in 2021 with a new set of texts meant for 2021-2025 or would WAEC be made to produce two types of question papers in those subjects? These are very critical issues that should be put into consideration before steps are taken as to whether the examination should be cancelled for this year or not!

Outside the issue of WASSCE date fixture and examination cancellation attempt, more worrisome is the impression that adult business owners and individuals in the lower cadre of some governmental parastatals cannot manage well at their various work places in consideration for the graveness of the pandemic. The question then arises: are our policy makers giving the impression that most adults are not that intelligent to discern what is safe or not for them? Why do they keep making the lockdown favourable to themselves alone, while the poor masses keep languishing in abject penury as well as pains from resultant hunger facilitated by economic hardship accompanying the lockdown? From all indications, only policies that seem to favour them alone have been those attracting their attention. A critical look should be taken at the recent pronouncement of commencement of airline operations (which remains the index point of COVID-19 in this country, before transmission comes down to the community level). How on earth does this favour a poor man? The poor interstate roads they refused to put in the right shape, they once again do not want to ply. Really, there is God!

Seriously, all these counter-productive moves keep doubts in mind about the government’s sincerity on the updates being dished out from time to time on COVID-19 here in this country. Their actions are beginning to give people the impression that they are intent upon de-populating the poor masses with the instrumentality of law in conjunction with hunger. One may even be tempted sometimes to ask if those in government themselves who are arbitrarily getting exposed at the moment have ‘extra lives’ like that of the “Mario” character in the eponymous game, or like the proverbial cat with nine lives? All these actions to the thoughtful give the impression that existence is a special preserve of a specific class of people; those in government! All these put together require serious thoughts and actions as the masses are going through a lot at the moment.  Moreover, people have been living from hand to mouth since this started. Many have been living on borrowed money, while other responsible men have practically turned to beggars, piling up feeding loans upon loans! This is quite unfair and insensitive on the part of those in government who have been living large at the expense of the poor with no access to any tangible palliative as against what is being purported in the media.

Back to the crux of the matter, the issue in contention is clearly that of ego. Let the Presidential Task Force on COVID-19 call for representation from WAEC and the ministry of education. Let them jointly come up with a blueprint on the conduct of the examination in a way similar to how they think the 2020 elections would succeed despite the presence of COVID-19. They should both focus on the future of the innocent children. WAEC on its part should also shift grounds a bit. It is not too bad an idea if the school examination is fixed for at least one month after the August 3 earlier suggested by the Federal Government for resumption of revision activities for the concerned students. By so doing, some smiles will come into the cheeks of people of a sector that has been long abandoned, the teachers; especially private school teachers whose services are based on “No work, no pay” basis. Anything short of this is nothing but an affront to the existence of the downtrodden!

 Peter,  wrote from Lagos.

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