"Utterly Indefensible": Atiku Slams WAEC Exam Conditions as “National Disgrace,” Demands Retake of Affected Papers

 

Atiku Abubakar Decries WASSCE Conditions, Labels Them a Blight on Nigeria’s Education System

Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has issued a scathing rebuke of the appalling conditions under which students across Nigeria sat for the 2025 West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE), describing the situation as a disgrace that reflects a deeper failure within the nation’s public education system.

Responding to widespread reports and viral footage of students taking the English Language paper late into the night using lanterns and mobile phone flashlights, Atiku called for a retake of the affected paper and urged authorities to take immediate corrective action. He condemned the incident as a reflection of "gross institutional negligence" and warned that it should not be allowed to recur.

The former Vice President’s statement was released on Thursday, just hours after social media erupted with disturbing visuals of students hunched over exam scripts in poorly lit classrooms. One particularly harrowing report came from Government Secondary School, Namnai, in Taraba State, where candidates narrowly escaped injury following a storm that led to the collapse of their examination hall.

Calling the situation a “national disgrace,” Atiku expressed dismay that such an occurrence happened barely a day after the world observed International Children’s Day. The timing, he said, underscored a painful irony, highlighting how little value is placed on the welfare and future of Nigerian children.

“The recent report of students sitting for the West African Senior School Certificate Examination in appallingly dark and unfit conditions across the country is nothing short of a national disgrace,” Atiku wrote. “This is not merely an unfortunate incident — it is a damning indictment of our systemic failure to uphold the most basic standards in public education.”

He emphasized that students cannot be held solely responsible for preparing for exams when the institutions tasked with administering them fail so catastrophically. According to him, expecting students to deliver their best under such dire circumstances is not only unrealistic but also “utterly unjust.”

The 2025 WASSCE English Language paper was reportedly rescheduled from its original time of 4 p.m. to 7 p.m., a delay that the West African Examinations Council (WAEC) attributed to measures aimed at preventing examination malpractice. However, this justification has drawn fierce criticism from stakeholders, including the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS), which labeled the timing shift “insensitive” and “a gross disregard for the safety and well-being” of candidates, particularly those in rural or infrastructure-deficient communities.

NANS also lashed out at WAEC’s internal security mechanisms, arguing that the body’s failure to prevent paper leaks should not translate into punitive conditions for students. They contended that the exam board’s corrective measures effectively punished the victims instead of the perpetrators.

Atiku, echoing these sentiments, demanded that the paper in question be re-administered in all the centers where conditions were unfit, warning that to do otherwise would jeopardize the academic future of thousands of young Nigerians.

“This incident must awaken our national conscience,” he said. “It must compel immediate and sustained investment in critical social infrastructure, with education as the foremost priority — not in rhetoric but in tangible action.”

He concluded by urging the relevant bodies to create and enforce minimum infrastructural standards for all high-stakes national exams. According to him, the lack of such safeguards has already caused irreparable psychological and academic harm, and failing to act now would ensure the cycle repeats.

“We must never allow such a shameful scenario to repeat itself — not under our watch,” Atiku asserted.

As reactions continue to pour in, the crisis has ignited a broader national conversation about the state of public education in Nigeria — a conversation that, many believe, is long overdue.