Applicants protest WAEC recruitment exercise amid ongoing crisis

Monday, September 7, 2026 - The ongoing crisis surrounding the 2026 West African Examinations Council results has taken another turn, as applicants for the council’s recruitment exercise held on Saturday complained of technical glitches, inaccessible examination portals and other challenges during the computer-based aptitude test.

Some applicants who took to social media to narrate their experiences alleged that the recruitment examination was disrupted by network failures and other technical problems.

An applicant, Okih Meshach, who expressed his frustration on Facebook, said the technical difficulties had left candidates who prepared for the examination disappointed.

“Why on earth would Nigeria and WAEC be frustrating people? After burning (a) candle to study and be ready for exams, the government system keeps failing and keeps giving reasons to youths why they must not trust or rely on them,” he wrote.

Meshach added, “The WAEC exam today is frustrating and nothing to write home about due to their network. Why is Nigeria always finding it hard to conduct peaceful ICT exams?”

Another applicant who posted on X as @PenitentBen said he missed the examination after receiving a message notifying him of the test date without specifying the time and venue.

He said, “I applied for the recruitment exercise. On the 2nd of this month, I received a text message informing me that the CB-Aptitude Test would be on the 5th, yet they didn’t specify the time and venue for the said test. I ended up missing out on that.”

The applicant also complained about difficulties accessing a spreadsheet containing the details of shortlisted candidates, saying it took a long time to load before displaying technical errors.

Similarly, @Sididamrawi said he experienced difficulties after receiving a spreadsheet containing the names and examination numbers of shortlisted applicants.

“The same thing happened to me. A friend just forwarded a WAEC spreadsheet with names of shortlisted individuals and their examination numbers. I tried to write the exams now, and it’s telling me ‘invalid details,’” he wrote.

Another applicant, @farmbookOO, said he travelled to his state capital for the examination but found no WAEC officials at the venue.

He said that after finding a spreadsheet containing the details of shortlisted candidates online, he waited at the venue until 1 pm, which he said was his allocated examination time.

“I tried logging in till 2 pm, but the WAEC site was not online. I set on my journey back to my base town, got home and tried logging in again, and the site is telling me I have already completed the exam process,” he said.

An applicant identified as Adewale, @Haryormikhun, also alleged that he was unable to access the examination platform throughout the 40-minute test period.

“I didn’t even get any chance to log in, let alone do the test. The website was down throughout the period of 40 minutes test duration,” he wrote.

Another applicant, Erhuen Titilayo, @tuntomiwa, criticised the council over the reported glitches, amid the controversy surrounding the 2026 WASSCE results.

“WAEC and glitch na 5/6 (sic). We were complaining; people were saying it’s because of malpractice. Is this recruitment examination glitch also malpractice on the part of applicants? Failure nation, failed system. It is well with upcoming generations,” he wrote.

Meanwhile, the WAEC Head of Public Affairs, Moyosola Adesina, disputed the allegations that the exercise was marred by glitches when contacted on Sunday.

She said, There were no glitches, and the examinations were concluded.”

The complaints came amid an ongoing controversy over the 2026 WASSCE results, with the National Association of Proprietors of Private Schools raising concerns over the conduct and outcome of the examination.

The concerns were contained in a statement signed by the NAPPS National President, Samira Jibir, and the National Secretary, Kayode Adeyemi, and dated September 3.

The statement, which detailed a meeting between the association and the Minister of Education, Dr Tunji Alausa, acknowledged the need for WAEC to improve its technology and strengthen its digital systems to enhance the efficiency, security and credibility of its examinations and result-management processes.

The statement also noted that the stakeholders called for the strengthening of National Examination Council examinations as credible alternatives to WAEC.

They said comparative 2025 and 2026 WASSCE performance data submitted to the minister showed an overall improvement at the credit-pass level in 2026, which appeared inconsistent with the pattern of WAEC-released results and the widespread failure reportedly recorded among candidates who sat the computer-based examination.

It noted significant declines of more than 30 per cent in Igbo Language and 19 per cent in Physics, which were identified for further consideration.

NAPPS also requested an investigative committee to examine its concerns, while the minister’s office was said to have indicated that a decision on the request would be taken after ongoing engagements, reviews and related exercises.

The meeting further disclosed that WAEC had completed remarking requested by 28 schools, with no changes recorded in 25 schools and marginal changes in three.

The stakeholders also called on the examination body to provide clear statistical evidence showing the relationship between the anti-malpractice measures and the pattern of results released.

Meanwhile, the WAEC Head of the Nigeria National Office, Dr Amos Dangut, has continued to defend the 2026 results while dismissing suggestions that glitches affected the outcome.

He had also insisted that the examination body’s marking, processing and moderation procedures remained credible.

ARISENEWS reported that Dangut during a virtual dialogue organised by the Education Writers Association of Nigeria, themed: “Addressing Concerns over 2026 WASSCE Results, Other Matters”, acknowledged the concerns surrounding the results but urged stakeholders to seek clarification directly from the council rather than relying on unverified claims circulating on social media.

He had stated that the council had introduced major innovations into the conduct of the examination, including computer-based assessment, randomisation and serialisation of questions, as part of efforts to strengthen the integrity of WASSCE.

The latest complaints by recruitment applicants have consequently added another layer to the scrutiny of WAEC’s examination technology, as stakeholders await further explanations and the outcome of the ongoing review of the 2026 WASSCE results.