The West African Examinations Council (WAEC) has put 619,985 candidates sitting this year’s Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE) on notice that any student who assaults or threatens an invigilator faces permanent exclusion from all future examinations conducted by the Council.
The warning was issued as the weeklong examination got underway on Monday, May 4, with two papers daily at 9:00 AM and 1:00 PM. The examination runs until Monday, May 11, and is being administered at 2,302 centres nationwide, with 21,791 invigilators deployed across all venues. The 2026 candidature of 619,985 represents an increase of 16,657 over last year’s figure of 603,328, and includes 304,273 male and 315,712 female candidates from 20,390 schools. An additional 156 candidates from Togo and Benin are also sitting the examination at a designated centre in Ghana.
WAEC said the warning is part of a broader drive to protect the integrity and safety of the examination process. Candidates found guilty of assaulting or threatening examination officials face cancellation of all subject results, a ban from future sittings, and potential referral for criminal prosecution, the Council stated, adding that such offences will be handled with zero tolerance.
The caution extends beyond physical assault. Threatening language, deliberate non-compliance with instructions, or any attempt to obstruct or interfere with the work of an invigilator will be treated as a serious breach of examination conduct and sanctioned accordingly.
Bono, Ahafo and Bono East Regional Controller of WAEC, Daniel Nii Dodoo, was direct in his message: “Every invigilator on duty deserves to work in a safe environment. Any candidate who threatens that safety will face the full consequences of our regulations.”
Broader Malpractice Crackdown
The assault warning is one element of a wider zero-tolerance stance WAEC has adopted for the 2026 BECE. The Council has prohibited mobile phones and all other unauthorised materials from examination centres, and warned that violations including script theft or substitution, submitting multiple answer booklets, possessing more than one question paper, and collusion between candidates will all attract severe sanctions up to and including legal action.
The Ghana Education Service (GES) has taken additional steps to strengthen credibility this year, with Director-General Professor Ernest Kofi Davis disclosing that all supervisors and invigilators under investigation for their alleged involvement in last year’s BECE have been barred from participating.
WAEC urged parents, teachers and community leaders to reinforce standards of conduct at home and in schools, reminding them that the behaviour of candidates during examinations reflects the values instilled in them. The Council reaffirmed that success in the 2026 BECE must be built on discipline, integrity and individual merit.
