The Minister of State for Education, Tunji Alausa, has reaffirmed the federal government’s commitment to tackling examination malpractice and eliminating miracle centres, which facilitate mass cheating. Speaking on Channels TV on Tuesday, Alausa described malpractice as a disservice to hardworking students and vowed to bring an end to the rampant dishonesty in the nation’s education system.

“We have problems with examination malpractice, which we are addressing frontally as a government,” Alausa stated. “This is not acceptable because if you let people cheat, you will disincentivise the hardworking people. We will tackle this issue of miracle centres and pervasive exam cheating decisively. We would bring a complete end to this menace that has invaded our educational system.”

In line with this goal, the minister recently inaugurated a committee to improve the quality of examinations across Nigeria. He also announced that the government aims to make the Senior Secondary Certificate Examination (SSCE) fully computer-based by 2027, reducing opportunities for paper-based exam malpractice. Alausa further expressed concerns over reports that some examination administrators fabricate results for students who never took the tests, vowing to closely monitor the system and enforce strict consequences for offenders.

Recent statistics highlight the urgency of the government’s crackdown on malpractice. In 2024, the West African Examinations Council (WAEC) withheld the results of 215,267 candidates (11.92% of total examinees) due to various cases of malpractice, while 2023 recorded a higher rate of 16.29%. Similarly, the National Examination Council (NECO) recorded 8,437 malpractice cases in 2024, down from 12,030 in 2023. With these figures in mind, Alausa insists that addressing exam leakages requires a holistic approach, stressing that students, administrators, and corrupt officials must all be held accountable.