The Commission lamented that such lapses have created the enabling environment for some staff to perpetuate money-making plans with desperate pupils, teachers, and/or parents to carry out examination fraud.
This confirmation by the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) indicates that there is alleged existing examination malpractice syndicate between some West African Examination Council (WAEC) staff and some candidates.
This was made known in ongoing criminal investigations by the ACC against the country’s examination body.
The ACC has reassured the general public that they shall be working with the management of WAEC to conduct a systems and process review of structures and operations for the examination body, as a matter of urgency, with a view to forestalling and preventing a re-occurrence.
Meanwhile, the Commission says it is proceeding with the prosecution against the key conspirators in the scheme; although the arrested pupils would not be prosecuted, but would be used as prosecution witnesses, the release added.
It could be recalled that on Monday 24th September, 2018 the ACC in collaboration with the Sierra Leone Police, and Office of National Security (ONS) conducted an operation leading to the arrest of seventy one (71) persons at a private residence at Aberdeen, Freetown on allegations of possessing partially-filled WAEC answer booklets, and tampered envelops, contrary to Section 48 (1) of the ACC Act 2008. The arrested persons were mostly private candidates for the September/October 2018 West African Senior Secondary School Certificate Examination (WASSCE).
According to the findings of the ACC, the pupils were to write the examinations at night and return the scripts to WAEC officials who would ensure that they are surreptitiously included in the WAEC script room and marked as normal scripts.
