By Abdulai kargbo.
Parliamentary Committee on Basic and Senior Education engaged the West Africa Examination Council and the Ministry of Basic and Senior Education to discuss the fate of students whose names had been omitted to take this year’s WASCE Exams. Addressing wittiness from both the Ministry of Education and WAEC, the chief whip of the Sierra Leone People’s Party, Hon. Dixon Rogers, said The issue of pupils whose names had been taken off from the list of those who are to take the exams has been a topic of discussion in the public sphere, stating that several calls have been put through to the ministry from all district across the country, with parent and some authorities emphasizing the impact this would have on victims. Because of the cry from parents, Parliament, through the committee on Basic Education, summoned the authorities involved,” The meeting is to deliberate on the status of our pupils as exams are fast approaching.” He added that the meeting was for the ministry and WAEC to update parliament on their preparedness regarding the conduct of this year’s WASCE Exams, considering the challenges recounted already.
In his statement, the Chairman of the Parliamentary Oversight Committee on Education, Hon. Alpha Fode Madie Jabbie, said the engagement should be focused on how to prevent such calamity in future exams, as this issue of omission of names of pupils to take exams started not this year. He pegged the committee’s focus on the issue of exam malpractice and how WAEC treats it. However, the issue of the possibility of over one hundred thousand pupils taking their exams is still topical. It was a suggestion by Hon. Abdul Karim Kamara from Kambia that the head of WAEC comment on this. Mr. Mustapha Koroma, the head of the West Africa Examination Council Sierra Leone, said the omission of names of pupils to take the WASCE is a result of failure on the side of school heads to enter continuous Assessment grades (CASS) for their pupils, which is a requirement for any pupil to take the exams. In 2021, a new format of CASS entry was reintroduced( preCASS), which opposed the traditional format) postCASS), he stated that WAEC took the time to enlighten school heads on this development and further gave them updates about accessing their portal. He recounted that some school heads adopted the new format while some downplayed the issue. He furthered that though, with the plea of the Minister of Basic Education, they reopened the portal to enable school heads to do their entry, many of these heads of schools failed to comply, being afraid of the structure that has been out in place by the ministry, as the government now makes the payment for no repeater. The new policy from the ministry is that the government sponsors no repeater. School heads failed to upload their CASS on the third reopening of the portal due to the dubious act they had engaged in, emphasizing that is the reason for such stagnation.
Addressing the mismatch between what was sent by the government, which was one hundred and seventy-six thousand pupils, and what was approved by WAEC, which was one hundred and forty-six thousand pupils, Mr. Mustapha Koroma explained that the Fifty-five thousand deficit are those who had not passed English or and mathematic in their BECE exams, as that was a policy initiated by the ministry in 2021. Owing to the huge number of pupils who are possible victims, Hon. Abdul Karim Kamara, from Kambia, requested that a possible solution be sought to save the future of these pupils. Mr. Koroma reaffirmed that due to the administrative and decision-making structure of the West Africa Examination Council, they do not have the power to change things here in Sierra Leone. To the ministry and WAEC, this stagnation is a result of negligence from heads of school to comply with the new policy, But to Hon. Abdul Karim Kamara, this stagnation was caused by WAEC alone; as per law, collection of data is the responsibility of the Ministry of Basic Education, “ Mr. Speaker, the Ministry is taking responsibility of a crime they did not commit,” he said. Pegging this appalling situation to the implication it may have on the future of the affected kids, Hon. Abdul Karim Kamara gave a 72 hours ultimatum for WAEC to resolve the issue and find a solution for the affected kids, or else he promised a possible lawsuit against WAEC.
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