By Ebrima G. Sankareh
Unimpeachable sources from the Department of State for Basic and Secondary Education reveal massive examination malpractices in the recently released Gambia Basic Education Certificate Examinations held in May-June, 2007. Our correspondent Kissy Kissy Mansa says the Department has since suspended the entire results pending rigorous investigations by the authorities and the West African Examinations Council (WAEC) the body tasked with standardization tests in English Speaking West African states mostly known as the Anglophone.
Fatou L. Faye, Basic & Secondary Education Minister
Says Kissy, “the Department suspects massive examination irregularities particularly, in the sciences and results are on hold until further notice”. This scandalous revelation comes less than ten days after a press release from the Education Department painting a rather rosy picture of student performance. That release reads in pertinent part “ 19,561 wrote the examinations of which 10, 246 were male and 9,315 were female. That 25 students scored Aggregate 6 compared to only 3 students in 2006, showing a significant increase in student performance. Admission to grade 10 should be based on the Core Subjects to be decided by the Board of Governors and not exceed Aggregate 42.” As the Jammeh government was celebrating a supposedly increased performance, news come trickling that the results were in fact, tainted; an all too familiar pattern of Yahya Jammeh’s Gambia- a country reminiscent of the proverbially broken train, running towards a broken bridge.
According to Kissy, Education officials who begged anonymity have expressed shock at the dismal state of Gambian education, which they say, is on the brink of total collapse. “Ours is totally corrupt and now education is all about money and position; students enter classrooms with mobile phones text messaging boy friends mostly senior government officials among them Permanent Secretaries and Ministers” a concerned official told Kissy. “There is total lack of respect for teachers because state ministers who are supposed to implement policy are at the receiving end of the cycle meddling in every facet of student life with some ministers attending high school dance parties using students as pimps and girlfriends” they lament.
The scandal is going to affect Gambian parents particularly, those from the provinces who had already started the application process for their children’s entry to Senior Secondary Schools (High School) a very frustrating exercise like a dog trying to bite its tail.
As we went to press our correspondent predicts that some heads might be rolling pretty soon and that the all too pervasive NIA- National Intelligence Agency have begun its preliminary investigations. It remains to be seen who will be affected by this scandal, which will no doubt affect the education of all 10th. Graders in the class of 2007.