Senate queries education minister, WAEC over SSCE guidelines

The Senate on Tuesday summoned the Minister of Education, Dr Tunji Alausa, and the Head of the Nigeria National Office of the West African Examinations Council (WAEC), Dr Amos Dangut, to explain the newly introduced guidelines for the 2025/2026 Senior Secondary Certificate Examination (SSCE).

The invitation followed a motion by Senator Sunday Karimi (APC, Kogi West), who warned that the revised subject requirements for SS3 students sitting the May/June examinations could trigger widespread failure.

He said the sudden implementation of the policy would force candidates to write subjects they had neither been taught nor adequately prepared for.

Several lawmakers who contributed to the debate agreed that although educational reforms were important, the timing of the new guidelines was problematic.

They argued that the adjustments should not apply to students already in SS3, who had spent years preparing under a different curriculum.

The Senate urged WAEC and the Ministry of Education to exempt 2025/2026 candidates from the new requirements and instead implement the changes from the 2027/2028 academic cycle to allow for proper preparation.

Senator Adams Oshiomhole (APC, Edo North) criticised the lack of planning before the reforms, questioning whether schools had the teachers, laboratories and facilities required to support the new subjects.

“We wake up with an idea and rush to implement it. For a new subject to start, citizens should be fully informed and prepared,” he said.

Senator Idiat Adebule (APC, Lagos West), a former education commissioner, backed the motion but insisted the matter must be thoroughly looked into.

Chairman of the Senate Committee on Appropriations, Senator Adeola Olamilekan (APC, Ogun West), also stressed that students could not be examined on subjects they were never taught.

The matter was referred to the Senate Committee on Basic and Secondary Education, which is expected to report back within two weeks.

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