WAEC certificates likely to be rejected abroad – Apaak worried

Deputy Ranking Member of the Education Committee in Parliament, Dr. Clement Apaak has urged the government of Ghana to be concerned about examination malpractices that are witnessed during examinations conducted by the West African Examination Council (WAEC).

The MP for Builsa South fears the authenticity of WAEC certificates will be demeaned abroad when Ghanaians want to further their education abroad if examination malpractices in second-cycle institutions are not nipped in the bud.

Dr. Apaak’s concern follows investigations by Education Think Tank, Africa Education Watch, which revealed that question papers for the 2020 West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE) were leaked to candidates.

The Executive Director of Africa Education Watch, Kofi Asare, on the sidelines of unveiling the report, indicated question papers were sent from WAEC’s IT department to other online platforms which were subsequently forwarded to his outfit by a member on the platform.

He said some parents were asked by handlers of the platform to pay some amount of money for their wards to get access to the questions and answers.

The government and the Ghana Education Service (GES) are yet to respond officially to the damning report, barely a week after it was unveiled.

However, speaking on Dwaboase on Power 97.9 FM, Dr. Apaak, a seasoned academic, condemned the government for being silent on the matter and went on to caution the managers of the education to swiftly move to deal with the canker.

Asked by the host, Prince Minkah to touch on the dire consequences of the malpractice, the former lecturer at the University of Ghana said “If care is not taking, the [WAEC] certificates our children will use to seek access to higher education in countries like Canada and UK will be questioned.”

“We should also recognise that we are playing in a global society, so the world is also watching and they are also monitoring. They knew what was going on before Africa Watch came out with this report,” he revealed.

He said the malpractice is real because “as a former lecturer before I left the university, we had students who came to the university and could not even put up a sentence.”

He has since filed a question to invite the Minister for Education, Dr. Yaw Osei-Adutwum to appear before the house to answer the various questions educationists are raising in connection with the bad practice among SHS students.

“We are working to file a private member motion. We are also planning to invite Africa Education Watch to the House to throw more light on the issue,” added Apaak.