WAEC has withheld the results of 167,486 candidates from the 2026 WASSCE for school candidates.
This figure represents 8.59 per cent of the 1.2 million candidates who sat for the examination.
Education Minister Tunji Alausa had earlier announced that public examinations would transition to Computer-Based Testing.
The full CBT rollout for school-based WASSCE and NECO is now scheduled to take off in 2027.
The shift from paper-and-pencil tests was aimed at eradicating widespread cheating.
WAEC’s Head of National Office, Dr Amos Dangut, attributed the improvement to measures introduced by the council.
These include the continued deployment of computer-based examinations, paper serialisation and the Digital Examiner Mark System.
Supervisors and invigilators found aiding examination malpractice will face sanctions.
Stakeholders are now insisting that miracle centres must be completely erased.
A miracle centre is an examination venue where supervisors, teachers or outside parties collude to provide answers or permit proxy test-takers.
Students walk out of these centres with multiple distinctions yet routinely fail to score basic thresholds in JAMB UTME examinations.
The National President of NAPTAN, Prof Boniface Odeh, said miracle centres threaten the credibility of WAEC and NECO exams.
He attributed the menace to poor teaching, inadequate preparation and society’s preference for certificates over competence.
“Although some private schools are implicated, many still operate responsibly. So, I urge stronger monitoring, integrity-based accreditation and stricter sanctions against offenders,” Odeh said.
The National President of CONUA, Dr ‘Niyi Sunmonu, described exam malpractice as a systemic problem.
“It is a systemic problem involving candidates, parents, schools, examination officials, and organised malpractice networks,” he said.
CONUA proposed a National Examination Integrity Compact involving government, WAEC, NECO, JAMB, schools, teachers, parents and students.
The objective should be to create an examination system where honest preparation is easier than cheating.
“Nigeria does not need ‘miracle results’. Nigeria needs an examination system that makes honest results possible, credible, and respected,” Sunmonu added.
The National President of NAPPS, Chief ‘Yomi Otubela, said the solution goes beyond simply withholding results.
“We need a comprehensive, technology-driven approach that addresses malpractice before, during, and after examinations,” he said.
He called for stronger accreditation and continuous monitoring of examination centres.
The National President of AFED, Orji Kalu Emmanuel, expressed confidence that the situation would change as CBT reforms take full effect.
He noted that the curriculum review and the National Centralised Continuous Assessment Platform are key interventions.
“By tracking students’ performance from term to term, it reduces the incentive for last-minute ‘miracle’ upgrades and makes malpractice much harder to conceal,” he said.
Stakeholders agreed that technology, institutional accountability and sustained collaboration are essential to eliminating examination malpractice.
Digital Operations Manager at The Students Forum Nigeria.
