Education Ministry Calls on WAEC PRO to Verify Facts Before Making Public Statements
Accra, Ghana - Dec 26, 2024 - Ghana's Ministry of Education has called out the West African Examinations Council (WAEC) for making public statements without verifying facts internally. This comes after WAEC's Public Relations Officer disputed Minister of Education Dr. Yaw Osei Adutwum's claim that the 2024 WASSCE results would be released by December 29.
At the heart of the issue is a funding dispute. WAEC claims it needs an additional GHc35 million to process the results, while the Ministry of Education says it has already disbursed GHc167,976,815 to WAEC since July 2024.
Head of Public Relations for WAEC, John Kapi told Graphic in an intrview that “Without any formal meeting with the management team of WAEC, he addressed the media present, giving them assurances that results would be released by December 29. We wish to state that apart from a cheque for GH25 million that was issued on December 18, no further releases out of the outstanding GHS118 million have been made.
“The Council awaits the release of the additional GHc35 million it has requested from the Ministry of Education to enable it to fix the broken-down scanners, conclude scanning of the objective test answer cards, and then process the results.”
However, the Ministry of Education clarified in a statement issued on Thursday, December 26, that in a letter dated December 20, 2024, signed by the Head of the National Office of WAEC (Ref. No. HNO/GES/MOE/VOL.28/156), WAEC formally acknowledged receipt of a cheque for GHS 25,000,000.
“This payment represents part of the Ministry’s financial commitment towards the 2024 WASSCE (School Candidates) examination fees.''
“It is therefore surprising to note that the WAEC PRO has publicly denied the receipt of the GHS 25,000,000 payment, despite official documentation confirming its acknowledgement,” it added.
The Ministry urged WAEC to verify facts internally before making public statements, emphasizing that such pronouncements can mislead the public or undermine the Ministry's efforts. With the release of the 2024 WASSCE results hanging in the balance, the Ministry assured the public that it is working closely with WAEC to resolve the issue.
“For emphasis sake, it is important to highlight that, from July 2024 to date, the Ministry has disbursed a total of GHS 167,976,815 to WAEC, in fulfilment of its financial obligations to the Council. We urge the public to remain calm as we work closely with WAEC to ensure the release of the 2024 WASSCE results,” it added.
Source: Lead News Online
