Honorable Alpha Fode Maadie Jabbie, Member of Parliament for the Sierra Leone People's Party (SLPP), Representing Falaba District and serving as the Parliamentary Oversight Committee Chairman for Basic and Senior Secondary Education, has provided assurances to the public that all eligible West Africa Senior Secondary School Examination (WASSCE) candidates will take the exams this year.
This clarification was provided in an exclusive interview with the author in response to claims made by opposition lawmaker Honorable Abdul Karim Kamara, who stated on social and traditional media that over one hundred and fifty thousand students may not be able to take the WASSCE exams due to the closure of the CASS system by the West Africa Exams Council (WAEC), which is used to digitally register candidates.
In his clarification, Honorable Jabbie asserted that the claim that the entire Kambia District will not be sending a single candidate for the 2024 WASSCE exams, as alleged by Honorable AKK, is incorrect.
"Kambia District has already registered 4,668 candidates from 36 schools for the 2024 WASSCE exams,"
Honorable Jabbie explained, emphasizing that Honorable AKK's assertion that 80% of senior schools in Bombali will not be sending candidates is "completely false and unsubstantiated."
He stated, "Bombali District has registered 12,280 candidates from 65 out of the 83 senior schools in the district. Therefore, it is a complete fabrication and the opposite of what Honorable AKK is asserting."
While acknowledging that there are additional students who have yet to be registered, he refrained from disclosing the exact number.
"The issue has progressed beyond the scope of our local WAEC office and is now being handled by WAEC International in Ghana. Vice President Juldeh Jalloh has intervened in the matter during WAEC International's annual conference here, but they have remained stubbornly difficult," he noted.
He reassured the affected schools and students that the Ministry had previously devised a contingency plan, which they will begin to implement within the next one or two weeks in case WAEC Ghana does not change its current position.
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