The National Examinations Council (NECO) has launched investigations into mass cheating involving 38 schools across 13 states during the 2025 Senior School Certificate Examination (SSCE internal).
Registrar of the council, Prof. Ibrahim Wushishi, disclosed this on Wednesday in Minna, Niger State, while announcing the release of the 2025 results. He said the affected schools would be summoned to the council for discussions before sanctions are imposed.
According to him, the cases form part of 3,878 instances of malpractice recorded this year, a significant drop from the 10,094 cases documented in 2024.
“During the conduct of the 2025 SSCE, 38 schools were found to have been involved in whole-school (mass) cheating in 13 states. They will be invited to the council for discussion, after which appropriate sanctions will be applied,” Wushishi stated.
Nine supervisors were also recommended for blacklisting over misconduct ranging from aiding malpractice to poor supervision. They include three from Rivers, one from Niger, three from the FCT, one from Kano, and one from Osun State.
Wushishi further highlighted a disruption in Adamawa State, where communal clashes in Lamorde Local Government affected eight schools between July 7 and 25. The crisis halted examinations in 13 subjects and 29 papers. He said talks are ongoing with the state government to reconduct the exams for the affected schools.
Despite the malpractice concerns, NECO recorded encouraging performance figures. Out of 1,367,210 registered candidates, a total of 1,358,339 sat for the exams. Of these, 818,492 candidates, representing 60.26 per cent, obtained five credits and above, including Mathematics and English.
A higher 1,144,496 candidates, representing 84.26 per cent, secured five credits and above irrespective of the two core subjects.
The results also showed Kano State leading the performance chart with 68,159 candidates (5.02 per cent) earning five credits including English and Mathematics.
Lagos followed with 67,007 (4.93 per cent), while Oyo placed third with 48,742. At the other extreme, Gabon, one of NECO’s foreign centres, recorded no candidate with five credits including the core subjects.
Wushishi revealed that the council would henceforth conduct SSCE on 38 subjects only, in line with the revised national curriculum. The adjustment, he explained, would shorten the examination period and reduce the waiting time for results.
He stressed that NECO remained committed to transparency and strict supervision, noting that the decline in malpractice cases this year was proof of the council’s efforts to safeguard the integrity of its examinations.
“We will not hesitate to sanction any school or official found culpable in malpractice or negligence,” he warned.
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