By Joyce Danso
Accra, June 16, GNA – Twenty-four persons have been arrested for various infractions in the ongoing 2025 Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE).
Mr John K. Kapi, the Head of Public Affairs, West African Examinations Council (WAEC), speaking on an Accra-based Television Station monitored by the Ghana News Agency, noted that within the first three days of the examination, a number of arrests had been made.
“We had one supervisor, two head teachers who were distributing photocopied materials to the candidates,” he said.
“We also had a number of teachers who had mobile phones on them, and had taken snapshots and they had distributed them to platforms they belonged to.”
“We also have a few others who were not related to the examination but some way somehow found their way into the examination hall, and they were either distributing photocopied answers to the questions or were out of the room solving questions and preparing to send the responses to the examination halls,” he said.
Mr Kapi said WAEC laws on examinations would be applied against those found culpable.
“There are fines that would be meted out to some people, there are also various periods of incarcerations depending on the presiding judge,” he said.
Mr Kapi said in the meantime, WAEC would compile the list and submit same to the Director General of the Ghana Education Service for disciplinary action to be taken against the culprits.
“Going forward, these people would have no business working with us any longer,” he said.
On pregnant candidates, Mr Kapi said WAEC did not have a total figure because the Council did not factor those issues in the registration process.
He explained that WAEC, during registration, took into consideration those with visual and hearing impairments, candidates who have cerebral palsy but “we only find pregnant candidates usually when we get to the examination centre….”
“The make-shift infirmary we have, however, takes care of such candidates with first aid but going forward the GES would come up with a policy on that,” Mr Kapi said.
A total of 603,328 candidates are writing this year’s BECE in over 2,000 examination centres.
Earlier in a statement, WAEC admonished candidates to strictly adhere to all examination rules or face the consequences.
The 2025 BECE, which began on June 11, would end on June 18.
GNA
Agnes Boye-Doe