Samuel Kallon 
By Ragan M. Conteh
The opposition Chief Whip, Hon. Abdul Karim Kamara has raised serious concerns over what he referred to as the continuous sabotaging of President Julius Maada Bio’s free quality education by the West Africa Examination Council (WAEC).
Substantiating his claims, Hon Kamara informed the House of Parliament that, 120 schools who supposed to take this Private WASSCE examination were intentionally deleted from the WAEC system.
He claimed that most of those students that are deprived of for a second time to sit the examination are girls.
He cited that in Kenema alone 20 schools were prevented from taking the examination, while 14 schools in Kambia were also deleted from the system thereby preventing hundreds of students from partaking in the examination.
Hon. Kamara highlighted that most of the girls that supposed to take this year’s WASSCE examination are at the age of 18 years and above and that they would wait until 2026 to write their exams.
The MP disclosed that over 400 girls from the Girls High School in Freetown and over 500 girls from Magburaka girls school are not part of this public examination and it is sad that their families have paid a lot of monies for them to take the exams.
Hon. Kamara pointed out that, there is cry all over the country due to the marginalization and prevention of students from taking this exams.
“WAEC has bought tickets for those 400 girls and many others across Sierra Leone may have got marriage or become dropout of schools especially so when WAEC and the government have a introduced new curriculum in the schools.”
He said he is frustrated over the closure of the exams portal because heads of schools may want to input their grading or students data in the system.
Hon. Kamara said this is not the problem caused by principals but by WAEC itself.
“Why always girls’ schools” he asked.
Therefore, the Speaker of Parliament, Hon. Solomon Sengepoh Thomas has ordered the summoning of the Minister of Education and WAEC to the Chamber of Parliament for questioning regarding the huge number of candidates being left out to write this year’s WASSCE exams.
