By Chinyere Nwachukwu
Lagos – The West African Examinations Council (WAEC) is not responsible for the planned relocation from Edo to other states its candidates scheduled to write Mathematics examination in its 2016 Nov/Dec., diet slated for Saturday.
The Head, Media and Publicity of the council, Mr Damianus Ojijeogu, told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Thursday in Lagos that the public should not blame the council for the development.
Ojijeogu spoke against the backdrop of calls by some of the candidates, asking WAEC to arrange for their movements to their respective new centres outside Edo for the examination.
NAN reports that the one of the council’s West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE) Nov/Dec. examination diet falls on Saturday, Sept.10, 2016, when the Edo governorship election would hold.
The affected candidates had kicked against their relocation to nearby states for their Mathematics examination, arguing that the relocation was risky and might affect their performances.
Ojijeogu said that the council had before now written letters to INEC and the Edo State Government.
WAEC in the letters pleaded that the candidates scheduled to write the examination on the Election Day be exempted from the restriction of movement order.
He said that the plea was not considered as Edo State and INEC insisted that the candidates should be relocated to nearby states for the examination.
“Relocating the candidates to other states was not WAEC’s idea.
“We had asked INEC, the Edo State Government and the security agencies to exempt the examination officials and candidates, who would be properly identified on the day of the election, so that they will not be affected by the movement restriction.
“We did not ask for any relocation. INEC stuck to its guns that the election will hold and that the candidates be taken elsewhere.
“That is why we were forced to start looking for centres in places like Agbor in Delta and Ore in Ondo State to accommodate the candidates.
“As we speak now, we are expecting that they will still reconsider their stands and allow the candidates to write the examination in Edo,’’ he said. (NAN)