16 arrested, 64 phones seized during WASSCE exams – WAEC

The West African Examinations Council (WAEC) has reported a concerning rise in examination malpractice during the 2025 West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE) for School Candidates.

Monitoring teams uncovered several breaches of exam regulations, including impersonation, unauthorized use of mobile phones, and the circulation of exam questions among candidates and even some invigilators.

According to John Kapi, WAEC’s Head of Public Affairs, 16 individuals were arrested at various examination centres. In one incident during the Elective Mathematics paper, 64 mobile phones were seized from a single school.

A particularly notable case involved two individuals at Ghana College in Kasoa who were sentenced to six months in prison for impersonation, while their accomplice received an eight-month sentence.

At Christian IPS in Kukurantumi, a school proprietor and an invigilator were caught distributing exam questions via a WhatsApp group. Both are now under police investigation.

Other malpractice incidents were reported at schools including St. Vincent College and Yeji Senior High School, although some suspects managed to evade arrest.

“We strongly condemn these acts of dishonesty by both students and teachers. We urge all school heads to protect the integrity of their institutions and maintain the trust placed in them,” Kapi stated.

WAEC has vowed to take firm action against all individuals and institutions found complicit in undermining the credibility of the exams. Scripts from affected schools will be subjected to detailed scrutiny.

Kapi also confirmed that investigations are ongoing into withheld Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE) results.

“Further assessments are underway to determine the final outcomes for candidates suspected of collusion,” he added.

The 2025 WASSCE for School Candidates began on August 5 and involves 461,640 candidates from 1,021 schools. It is scheduled to end on September 19.

The BECE was conducted from June 11 to June 18, with provisional results released on August 23.

WAEC says it remains committed to upholding the integrity of Ghana’s examination system and will continue to implement strict measures to ensure fairness and transparency for all candidates.