An Ashanti Region communicator for the ruling National Democratic Congress (NDC) has triggered a sharp public debate by warning that eliminating examination malpractice could cause the Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE) pass rate to collapse below 30 percent, an admission that comes as authorities arrest teachers and invigilators during the ongoing 2026 examinations.
Opoku Mensah, speaking on Angel FM in Kumasi, argued that the problem runs far deeper than rogue invigilators and implicates multiple layers of the education system. “The issues come from different angles, parents, teachers, headmasters, and even municipal and district directors of education,” he said.
His comments land in the middle of an active crackdown. The West African Examinations Council (WAEC) had by Wednesday arrested 19 supervisors and invigilators across six regions, with 10 of those arrests made in the Ashanti Region alone. Two suspects apprehended in the Bono Region had already been taken to court and fined GH¢2,400 each.
Among those arrested, some were caught using mobile phones to photograph question papers and share them on WhatsApp, while others input questions into artificial intelligence tools including ChatGPT to generate answers for candidates.
Mensah argued that if external invigilators were introduced into examination halls, particularly for Mathematics and Science, results in those subjects could fall below the 30 percent threshold. He also alleged that some district education directors actively facilitate cheating for payment, even as others oppose it.
He further criticised what he described as a pattern of weak follow-through after arrests. He pointed to instances where cases brought before the courts stall because WAEC officials fail to appear as required witnesses, allowing implicated teachers to escape meaningful consequences.
His call for reform centred on professionalising the invigilation process through competitive recruitment and improved pay, which he argued is the minimum condition for restoring credibility.
The Ministry of Education has warned that teachers convicted of malpractice will lose their jobs automatically, noting that eight of 40 persons caught in 2025 have already been convicted, dismissed from the Ghana Education Service (GES) payroll, and that 32 others remain before the courts.
The 2026 BECE, involving nearly 620,000 candidates nationwide, is scheduled to conclude on May 11.
