The results of 51,495 candidates who wrote the 2016 West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE) have been blocked on the website of the West African Examinations Council (WAEC).
This is because the candidates owe school fees and have, therefore, been directed to go to their former senior high schools (SHSs) to settle their indebtedness and collect their result slips.
Reacting to complaints that the results of some WASSCE candidates had been blocked by WAEC, the Deputy Director of Public Affairs of the council, Mrs Agnes Teye-Cudjoe, said it was the Ghana Education Service (GES) that instructed the council not to upload candidates who owed school fees.
She explained that candidates whose results were genuinely not online owed their schools and could only see their results after paying their school fees.
Mrs Teye-Cudjoe said that had been the practice since 2014 as it was the only way such candidates could be compelled to settle their bills.
“Anytime the student pays the school fees, he or she is expected to go to the GES for a letter which instructs us to upload that candidate’s results and we promptly do so,” she explained.
Mrs Teye-Cudjoe explained that the number of candidates whose results were not uploaded as of the time the results were released was far more than the number currently, and added that WAEC updated the list anytime a candidate was cleared by the GES.
She said the position of the GES to block the uploading of the results of such candidates was in the right direction as that was the only way the schools could retrieve their fees.
Asked how a candidate could determine whether his or her results were not uploaded because of non-payment of school fees, Mrs Teye-Cudjoe explained that if an affected student tried to access his or her results, a message would indicate that the said candidate should see his or her headmaster or headmistress.
“If a candidate’s results are withheld because of alleged examination malpractice, when that student tries accessing the results, he or she will be notified that the results are being investigated,” she explained.
Referring to the withheld results that were being investigated, Mrs Teye-Cudjoe said she was hopeful that by next week, a meeting would be held and the final outcome of the investigations would be made known.
She said WAEC was working to ensure that the genuine candidates whose results were among those withheld were not unduly disadvantaged.
On August 12, 2016, WAEC released the results of WASSCE which indicated that the entire results of 598 candidates had been cancelled, while the results of candidates from 85 schools had been withheld for alleged cases of mass cheating.
A?statement issued by WAEC explained that the withheld results would be cancelled if the candidates were found culpable or released if otherwise, while 13 others whose results were cancelled had been barred from taking any of the council’s examinations for two years, mainly for impersonation during the examination.
The statement further said 1,576 candidates had their subject results cancelled.
It said with the aid of the Item Differentia Profile (IDP) software, 2,293 candidates, who were identified to have cheated in the English Language, Mathematics and Integrated Science papers, had had their relevant subject results cancelled.
Sign up here to receive daily email alerts of breaking news in Ghana. GhanaStar.com is your source for all Ghana News. Get the latest Ghana news, breaking news, sports, politics, entertainment and more about Ghana, Africa and beyond.
