By Ibraheem Daramy
This is a special appeal to the Minister of Basic and Senior Secondary Education (MBSSE), Conrad Sackey, and his Chief Education Officer. I wish to respectfully inform you that my daughter, Fatmata Daramy, born on 2nd July 2011, with Index Number 05498002, who sat to the Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE) in 2023 and obtained an aggregate of twelve (12), has not yet been cleared by the MBSSE to enter for the West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE) next year. I am citing my daughter’s case because I have direct evidence, but I believe there may be thousands of similar cases across the country.
I visited the District Education Office in Makeni, where I met with the officer in charge of Information and Technology. I must commend him for his professionalism and assistance. He welcomed me into his office, seated me, and then opened his laptop to check my daughter’s records. To my shock, when he entered her Index Number, her name appeared in two other schools apart from the one where she is legitimately enrolled.
One such school, completely unknown to her, is Excellent Academy SSS, Western Area Rural (School Number: 6041767). Another is Lincoln Senior Secondary School, Masiaka, Port Loko District (School Number: 6021061). The only school where my daughter has ever been registered is the Benevolent Islamic Senior Secondary School, Ropolon – Makeni, Bombali District (School Number: 6020201). I can state with certainty that no other school possesses her legitimate credentials apart from Benevolent in Makeni.
Even more disturbing, during my brief time in the IT officer’s office, I witnessed a worse case: a single Index Number with the same name appearing across sixteen (16) different schools nationwide.
In my attempt to understand who bears responsibility for this national crisis, I consulted widely. From my findings, blame is shared between government authorities and certain rogue associates. A seasoned educationist even suggested that the West African Examinations Council (WAEC) cannot absolve itself, given the questionable handling of sensitive student data. Ultimately, every stakeholder in the education chain must subject themselves to serious self-examination.
I am also unsure what the authorities intended when they introduced the Continuous Assessment Scores (CASS) System into senior secondary schools. In theory, it was meant to strengthen accountability. In the past, some school heads had been registering out-of-school candidates to write the WASSCE at the public’s expense—costing the government millions. Whether the current problems are due to the sheer volume of data or human negligence, the public deserves answers.
When properly managed, CASS can be a valuable tool. It involves the ongoing evaluation of a student’s learning progress throughout the academic year, rather than relying solely on final examinations. This approach provides a more complete picture of a student’s abilities, helps identify learning difficulties early, reduces exam anxiety, and encourages consistent effort. With effective safeguards and oversight, CASS could genuinely improve our education system.
It is therefore urgent that the Ministry investigates these anomalies and takes immediate corrective action, not only for my daughter but also for the thousands of students whose futures may be at risk.
Email: [email protected]
#Daramyibraheem
