Delta journalist, Nwokocha writes education commissioner, demands end to  examination malpractice

•Congratulates new education commissioner

By Timi Black
Chief Correspondent

A forthright activist and Delta based journalist, Comrade Emeka Nwokocha has called on the commissioner of secondary education to rid off Delta secondary schools of examination malpractice.

This was contained in a statement signed and sent to Congress correspondent in Warri on Saturday.

The activist said examination malpractice is now a major challenge in advancing the educational sector in the state and Nigeria at large.

The Journalist while congratulating the new commissioner said: “The Honourable Commissioner of Secondary Education, Delta state, I want to use this medium, though belated, to congratulate you for having the intellectual depth to man this very important and tasking sector of the state’s economy.

“On that note, I sincerely applaud Governor Ifeanyi Okowa for finding you worthy in character and competence to govern the secondary education sector to reposition it for greater goals.

“On another note, I want to welcome you very pertinently to this very complex and problem ridden sector, and passionately enjoin you to gird your loins, as you will soon find out that the secondary education sector could be likened to a Pandora’s box, characterized by despicable activities capable of causing you a ‘nagging’ migraine that may defile any known medication.

“Honourable Commissioner, the above is simply a preface of the crux of the topic cum problem bedeviling the secondary education which I passionately want to bring to your notice, in the hope that you will urgently tackle it with utmost commitment.

“Going forward therefore, I am constrained to state without any “morsel” of equivocation that examination malpractice is a ravenous cankerworm eating deep into the fabrics of Delta state education system with attendant grave consequence on the future of the youths, and our educational system.

“Regrettably, while this infamous practice has become very rampant in the secondary schools, the government of the day seems to be overwhelmed by the increasing trend of this dastardly act in recent years.

“This is true because there is near absence of potent measures put in place by past and present governments to tackle the prevailing abominable act.

“Small wonder, the tenacity with which this vice becomes prominent by the day, is a matter of great concern to me and other good spirited Deltans”, he added.

Read full text:

ATTENTION:
The Commissioner For Secondary Education, Delta State,

Madam,

DIRE CONSEQUENCE OF EXAMINATION MALPRACTICE ON DELTA EDUCATION SYSTEM: A CLARION CALL FOR ACTION

The Honourable Commissioner of Secondary Education, Delta state, I want to use this medium, though belated, to congratulate you for having the intellectual depth to man this very important and tasking sector of the state’s economy.

On that note, I sincerely applaud Governor Ifeanyi Okowa for finding you worthy in character and competence to govern the secondary education sector and reposition it for greater goals.

On another note, I want to welcome you very pertinently to this very complex and problem ridden sector, and passionately enjoin you to gird your loins, as you will soon find out that the secondary education sector could be likened to a Pandora’s box, characterized by despicable activities capable of causing you a ‘nagging’ migraine that may defile any known medication.

Honourable Commissioner, the above is simply a preface of the crux of the topic cum problem bedeviling the secondary education I passionately want to bring to your notice, in the hope that you will urgently tackle it with utmost commitment.

Going forward therefore, I am constrained to state without any “morsel” of equivocation that examination malpractice is a ravenous canker worm eating deep into the fabrics of Delta state education system with attendant grave consequence on the future of the youths, and our educational system.

Regrettably, while this infamous practice has become very rampant in the secondary schools, the government of the day seems to be overwhelmed by the increasing trend of this dastardly act in recent years.

This is true because there is near absence of potent measures put in place by past and present governments to tackle the abominable act head on.

Small wonder, the tenacity with which this vice becomes prominent by the day, is a matter of great concern to me and other good spirited Deltans.

Without iota of doubts, examination fraud is a worrisome development seriously beckoning to your office to nip in the bud.

To say the least, the deteriorating state of education in Delta state is alarming, just as examination malpractice further puts the education sector in serious jeopardy.

Suffice it to say that Delta state brides itself as one of the educationally advantage states in Nigeria, thus, the government of Dr. Ifeanyi Okowa cannot afford the luxury of sacrificing this prestigious appellation on the altar of examination malpractice exacerbated by inordinate ambition of dubious proprietors and proprietress of private secondary schools to bastardize the education system, in a bid to satiating their unquenchable greed for ill-gotten wealth on one hand, and fraudulently promoting their schools as citadel of learning as they would aid their students in external examinations to score high grades.

Honourable Commissioner, let me share with you the legendary words of former American President, Barack Hussein Obama, in defense of education. He said, “as I’m winding down my presidency — I believe that if you’re (Americans) going to be able to do whatever you want to do in your lives –- if you want to become a teacher, or a doctor, or start a business, or develop the next great app, or be President — then you’ve got to have great education.”

On the strength of the above statement, it is pertinent to say that the progressive development of any nation and its people critically depends on the quality of education the nation gives its citizens. The import of this salient point brings to the fore the primary responsibility of the government of our dear Delta state to restore sanity in the education sector through total eradication of aberrant, indecent and criminal activities simply known as examination malpractice.

Honourable Commissioner, it is not an exaggeration to say that this barbaric act has become a norm and celebrated vice in our education system, mostly in the secondary schools operated and managed by private individuals.

In the same token, there is full proof that public schools also indulge in examination malpractice, but the private secondary schools are worse of.

Truth is, operators of private secondary schools dare the government and brazenly perpetrate examination malpractice with rabid impunity and make the crime fester like a wild fire. They create the fertile grounds for examination malpractice to thrive with ‘bold face’ while successive governments in Delta state play the ostrich.
Other partners in this heinous crime are the external invigilators who often compromise their professional assignment and become examination racketeer.

Honourable Commissioner, you may not be unaware of the huge harm this ignominious practice poses to the development of our youths, just as the consequences will have a lasting duration in our education sector.

Therefore, against the backdrop of the clarion call by good spirited Deltans to your office to stamp out examination malpractice in our secondary schools, I sternly urge you to be focused, proactive and thread the path of honour by doing everything humanly possible to curb this soaring crime in our secondary schools.
I believe your office will commit itself to achieving this great feat before your tenure rounds off.

Surely, no achievement by you in this period other than decissively wiping out examination malpractice will be more appreciated by Deltans, and lovers of quality education.

I solidly believe you have the capacity to change this ugly narrative and repositioning our education to making tremendous improvement.

On a final note, I am motivated by the fact that examination malpractice can be routed in our secondary schools if the constituted authorities, led by your office would take the bull by the horn and do the needful, in the interest of our great Delta state.

God Bless You !

Comrade Emeka Nwokocha, Journalist and Executive Director, Global Action Against Hunger, Crime And Violation of Peoples’ Rights (GAHCAVPER), wrote from Warri, Delta State.