The Abia Commissioner for Education, Prof. Ikechi Mgboji, has advised parents and guardians to be wary of sending their wards to schools indulging in examination malpractice.
Mgboji gave the advice in an interview with News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Aba on Wednesday.
He spoke against the backdrop of the closure of St. John’s Secondary School, Umunkere, Obingwa Local Government Area, which was identified by the West African Examination Council(WAEC) as “a miracle centre’’ noted for promoting examination malpractice.
The commissioner urged parents to send their children to schools where they would learn and be able to defend their certificates.
He decried the ugly trend whereby many parents were deliberately sending their children to schools which engage in malpractice.
The commissioner vowed that government would close any schools found promoting examination fraud in the state, noting that parents and teachers now collude to perpetrate examination malpractice.
“When we talk about examination malpractice, it is something that implicates some parents and implicates society as a whole.
“You are right because it is a systemic problem. It is sad that parents even go as far as paying extra money to have their children in such schools.
“There is this undue emphasis on paper qualification which pushes people to do anything to get that paper qualification and it is just wrong and counter-productive,’’ he said.
He said that the closure of St. John Secondary School was as a result of its indulging in examination malpractice.
“We received a report from WAEC; the documents are there that the school is a miracle centre and I felt that the time to act was long overdue.
“That school will not be the last that we are going to descend heavily upon and it should be a warning for all those who have allowed their schools to be used as centres for examination malpractice.
“Once we receive credible reports, we shall not fail to act.
“ Security agencies have been drafted to the school to ensure strict compliance and any disobedience will attract severe sanctions,’’ he said. (NAN)
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