By Gabriel Dike (Lagos), Fred Ezeh (Abuja), Laide Raheem (Abeokuta), Lateef Dada (Osogbo), Bere Gyang (Jos), Geoffrey Anyanwu (Enugu) and Chijioke Agwu (Abakaliki)
Parents and guardians have been ripped off by private schools, computer-based test (CBT) centres and some public schools. They collected far above exam fees approved by the West African Examinations Council (WAEC) and Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB).
At the close of registration for SS3 exams, WAEC registered over 1.5 milion students, while JAMB registered 1.8 million candidates for UTME/Direct Entry. The stipulated fee for WASSCE is N18,000 and for UTME is N4,700. Managements of the two exams bodies had warned schools and CBT centres against charging above the approved fees.
But investigations by The Education Report revealed that private schools, a few public schools and CBT centres defied WAEC and JAMB and charged above the approved fees. For WASSCE, some parents paid as much as N100,000 for external candidates, while SS3 students paid between N30,000 and N40,000. Private schools said the payment covered administrative charges, including “settling” exam supervisors.
For the UTME, unscrupulous CBT centres milked parents and collected extra money for registration. In some cases, they forced parents to register their wards for ‘coaching lessons.’ Some tutorial centres collected between N8,000 and N10,000 for an exam meant to cost N4,700.
WAEC head of National Office (HNO), Mr. Patrick Areghan, acknowledged the sharp practices among private schools. He insisted that the May/June WASSCE fee remained N18,000 and no school should collect above the amount.
Registrar of JAMB, Prof. Is-haq Oloyede, had also warned CBT centres not to charge above the approved N4,700. He threatened to sanction those found wanting.
It was gathered that a CBT centre in Abule-Egba, Lagos, demanded as much as N15,000. In Oshodi, Lagos, UTME candidates were made to pay N7,000 each. In Osun, Ebonyi, Delta, Ogun, Oyo, Kaduna, Anambra, Plateau and Imo states, JAMB candidates paid between N5,500 and N6,000 to some centres.
In Osun State, registration fees for May/June WASSCE were determined by private schools based on peculiar conditions and circumstances. Some private schools in the state charged between N28, 000 and N30,000 for internal students, while external students paid between N40,000 and N70,000, based on the level of assurance of making good grades.
A school visited by our correspondent in Ile-Ife said they don’t allow external candidates but investigations showed that each student paid N28,000 for the examination. A school in Osogbo collected N40,000 for WAEC and NECO from each external student. Internal students paid N30,000 each for WASSCE and Senior School Certificate Examination (SSCE).
Chairperson of the state chapter of the National Association of Proprietors of Private Schools (NAPPS), Alhaja Muinat Adepoju, admitted that private schools charged above the official fee, saying: “It is not possible to collect the stipulated WAEC fee.”
On why the schools charged above the official rate, he said: “There are running expenses before and after examination. We cannot force proprietors to collect the official amount approved by WAEC. It is not possible.
“Where do we get running cost? We are feeding government and government is not feeding us. Is it possible to use the official amount to go to WAEC office and everywhere that we need to go?
“I’m not aware of ‘settling’ officials during examination or any administrative charges. But there may be cases whereby people will think of entertaining visitors. For instance, if we have an invigilator in the school that will spend three hours in the morning and three hours in the afternoon, some courtesy demands that you give them at least a bottle of water.”
In Plateau State, the registration for the school exams became a thorn in the flesh of parents of students attending private schools. The state NAPPS has not been able to unify the WAEC exam fee among its members due to administrative charges.
Most of the schools at the point of WASSCE registration charged N30,000 for internal candidates and N60,000 for external candidates. Some of the schools registered external candidates more than their normal students, as that was a sure way to keep their schools flourishing.
At Glory Foundation Private School, Jos, N21,000 was paid per internal students and over N30,000 charged for external candidates. Some others charged N70,000 each for external candidates. The candidates were compelled to pay school fee for the three terms, while others charged over N100,000
Chairman of NAPPS in the state, Solomon Musa, spoke to our reporter in Jos: “The charges vary from school to school. For my school, it is N21,000, in addition to clearance, which will amount to N28,000, rather than the N18,000 official fee.
“There are some charges in WAEC office that you have to contend with. You pay N100 per candidate and if you go to area offices, you pay N350 per candidate. There is another N200 per candidate. So, the charges are from government.
“We added all those charges to the official fee and this depends on the schools. There is different payment for invigilator allowances for monitoring. If you have more candidates, you pay higher, that is why the fee is different.
“There are some government schools where candidates pay N25,000 for WASSCE. It depends on the principal of the school. Some registered external students for more resources to enable them keep the school running.”
Meanwhile, he debunked the claims that private schools were exploiting parents: “There are some public schools that pay more than private schools.”
Chairperson, FCT chapter of NAPPS, Olusola Bankole, said: “The society should be sincere and reasonable enough in their judgment of private school activities. We must know that there is no way private schools won’t put the additional charges that come with registration. There are unrecorded charges at the public school level as well.
“This is because several charges are involved along the line before a school is permitted to participate in WASSCE. There are lots of financial charges and other logistics attached to the exercise. All these cost money, which the school has to spread over what parents pay.
“In fact, some schools bear charges they do not calculate or include in the bill given to parents for WASSCE. There are charges for having fewer than 20 students, which WAEC adds to the bill of schools with less than 20 students.
“Remember, we will transport ourselves and invigilators from custodial centres to pick up question papers to and fro, depending on the number of papers for each day, apart from other logistics. There are other charges for photo album, which is not included in the main exam registration fee.
“Some schools now dedicate a vehicle to WAEC and other examinations. Some of the papers are three. Schools have to make provisions for them from the custodial centres to the schools and back.
“For instance, if external students are coming to write examination in a particular school, they will need to buy the school uniform because WAEC officials won’t allow candidates without the school uniform into the examination hall.”
Private schools in Enugu State charged students between N25,000 and N35,000 each for internal candidates and N40,000 each for external candidates. The NAPPS chairman in the state, Mr. Ike Ugwu, reacted: “Do government schools pay fees? Government schools are free so the first question would have been why are private schools collecting fees?
“If you know why private schools charge fees, you will know why they are collecting the fees for WASSCE. Private school is not mandatory, you can go to any school you want.”
Candidates in some private schools in Abakaliki, Ebonyi State, paid as high as N100,000 to sit for the exam with assurances from the schools that they would have excellent results. A student in one of the schools said: “Everybody knows that only N18,000 is what WAEC charges. But by the time you add school fees, administrative fee, security fee, environmental fee and others, you will be paying from N80,000 to N100,000. This is the true situation of things.”
South East NAPPS chairman, Mr. Onyeoma Agbo, told The Education Report: “It is not true. It is only the school fees that can make any student pay beyond N18,000 as approved by WAEC. And school fees vary.”
Ogun State chapter chairman of NAPPS, Dr. Lawrence Holumidey, said: “When you say private school, it is a school not being run by government subvention. Private school is a privately-run institution. The school generates funds, meaning that that school needs whatever money comes in.
“Majority of the parents, when they pay WAEC fee, they expect the child to come home with good result. Apart from normal school hours, which run from 8.00am till 2.00pm, every student in SS3 is expected to have additional preparation for WASSCE such as afternoon classes, Saturday classes, and even on Sundays, for students in the hostel.
“So, if any private school charges N20, 000, N25, 000 or N30, 000, I don’t think it is out of order. It also happens in the public schools in form of administrative charges. In the process of registering for this examination, there are logistics involved. There is equipment such as laboratory and reagents needed for practicals, which we can’t be charging extra money for. This is why private schools cannot be charging exactly what WAEC charges officially.
“You have to visit WAEC office during the process of registration. If our charges are as the same as approved by the examination body, where do you expect us to get the funds from?”