WAEC May Face Court Action Over Alleged Irregularities In 2026 Computer-Based WASSCE Results | Sahara Reporters

According to the foundation, the complaints relate to the operation of the computer-based examination environment, recording and processing of candidates’ responses, scoring and result generation, as well as the lack of an effective mechanism for candidates to independently verify how their results were produced.

An education group, the Initiative for School Excellence and Education Foundation, has threatened legal action against the West African Examinations Council (WAEC) over alleged irregularities in the recently released results of the 2026 Computer-Based West African Senior School Certificate Examination (CB-WASSCE).

The organisation gave the examination body 14 days to preserve examination records, disclose relevant data, and establish a mechanism for affected candidates to independently challenge their results.

The foundation, through its legal representative, Zuriel Law Practice, made the demand in a letter dated August 14, 2026, addressed to the Head of WAEC’s Nigeria National Office in Yaba, Lagos.

It said it has received complaints from a “substantial number” of candidates who sat for the 2026 CB-WASSCE and who raised concerns about the accuracy, reliability and verifiability of their results.

According to the foundation, the complaints relate to the operation of the computer-based examination environment, recording and processing of candidates’ responses, scoring and result generation, as well as the lack of an effective mechanism for candidates to independently verify how their results were produced.

The organisation stressed that it was not claiming that all results released by WAEC were wrong but argued that the volume and nature of the complaints warranted an objective verification of the examination process.

“Our Client is not alleging that every result released by WAEC is erroneous. Rather, the scale and nature of concerns warrant objective verification before these results are treated as beyond meaningful challenge,” the letter stated.

The foundation also referenced previous public representations by WAEC regarding technical and operational glitches encountered during an earlier examination cycle.

It said WAEC’s assurances that corrective measures and stronger safeguards had been introduced for the 2026 examination made it necessary for the examination body to demonstrate that those safeguards operated effectively.

The organisation demanded access to candidates’ electronic examination records, including the questions presented, recorded responses, changed answers, session and timing records, scores attributed to individual questions, raw scores, grading computations and records of any manual intervention or reprocessing.

It also wants WAEC to disclose records of any interruptions, disconnections, system errors, lost responses or other technical incidents that may have affected candidates’ examination sessions.

The foundation cited the Nigeria Data Protection Act, 2023, arguing that candidates have rights to access their personal data and safeguards concerning decisions made solely through automated processing.

It further demanded that WAEC preserve all electronic and documentary records relating to the administration, processing, scoring, and release of the 2026 CB-WASSCE results.

The records listed in the demand include candidate response databases, examination-session records, system audit trails, server and application logs, scoring databases, result-generation records, correction records, system-error reports, backups and technical reports concerning the computer-based examination platform.

The foundation also wants WAEC to preserve records relating to interruptions and reconnections, validation and quality assurance of the examination platform, conversion of raw scores into grades, as well as correspondence and reports concerning technical or scoring irregularities.

It warned that such records must not be deleted, overwritten, altered, destroyed or otherwise rendered unavailable pending the resolution of the complaints or any ensuing legal proceedings.

Beyond the preservation of records, the organisation demanded access to the regulations, protocols, manuals and technical standards governing the 2026 computer-based examination, including candidate authentication, response storage and processing, scoring, grading, quality assurance and the handling of technical failures.

It is also calling for a specific review mechanism for candidates with reasonable grounds to challenge their results.

Such a mechanism, according to the foundation, should allow affected candidates to access their electronic examination records, identify discrepancies and obtain human review by an examiner or qualified person independent of the original automated scoring process.

It further demanded reprocessing and re-scoring where errors are identified or reasonably suspected, preservation of the original electronic records throughout the review and, where a material defect is established and a candidate’s actual performance cannot be reliably reconstructed, an appropriate remedial examination opportunity.

The foundation has also proposed an independent verification exercise involving educational assessment and information-technology experts to determine whether the computer-based examination platform and result-processing system operated accurately and consistently.

It said the proposed exercise would not seek to replace WAEC’s academic judgment but would focus on verifying the technological and administrative processes upon which the examination results depend.

The foundation said it had deliberately withheld the identities of students who submitted complaints because some candidates and their parents were concerned about possible educational consequences for challenging the examination authority.

“Our Client considers that students should not be required to expose themselves to unnecessary adverse consequences merely to enable legitimate concerns about the integrity of a national examination system to be examined,” the letter stated.

The organisation is demanding that WAEC, within 14 days of receiving the letter, confirm the preservation of all relevant examination records, disclose the framework governing the 2026 CB-WASSCE and explain how candidates can obtain their individual electronic examination records.

It also wants WAEC to establish a transparent procedure for candidates to challenge their results, explain the safeguards used to verify electronically recorded responses and automatically generated scores, and disclose information concerning any material technical incidents encountered during the examination.

The foundation further wants WAEC to engage with it on an independent verification or audit mechanism and suspend any irreversible disposal, destruction or alteration of relevant examination records.

Alex Onyia, Chief Executive Officer of Educare, alleged that there was “a serious problem” with the recently released results which WAEC had so far failed to publicly acknowledge or address.

“There appears to be a serious problem with the recently released results that WAEC has so far refused to publicly acknowledge and address,” he said.

Onyia said the dispute was not merely about examination statistics but about the educational futures of thousands of young Nigerians.

“The consequences are not abstract. Real students are affected. Their admissions, opportunities and futures are at stake,” he said.

“We cannot sit back and watch an institution as important as WAEC toy with the destinies of young people because it is unwilling to admit that something may have gone wrong.”

He urged the examination body to acknowledge and investigate any possible technical failure.

“If there is a glitch, admit it. Investigate it transparently. Fix it. And where students have been wrongly affected, correct their results. That is what accountability looks like,” Onyia said.

“No institution should be too big to admit an error, especially when the future of a child may depend on it. WAEC must be accountable. WAEC must be transparent. And every affected student deserves answers.”

The foundation warned that failure by WAEC to meaningfully engage within 14 days would leave it with “no option” but to pursue appropriate legal remedies.

The foundation said the proposed court action could seek orders compelling WAEC to preserve and disclose relevant examination records, establish a candidate review and verification mechanism, conduct human reviews and independent reprocessing where discrepancies are established, and address any systemic defects shown to have affected the reliability of the 2026 examination results.

It stressed that its objective was to preserve public confidence in the examination system and protect the educational interests of affected students, while reserving all rights and remedies available to it and the affected candidates.