Former Anambra State Governor and Labour Party's 2023 presidential candidate, Peter Obi has expressed alarm over the West African Examinations Council's (WAEC) recent report in Nigeria.
On August 12, WAEC announced the results of the 2024 WASSCE, with its Head of Nigeria Organisation, Amos Dangut, declaring the examination a success.
However, out of 1,805,216 candidates who registered, 1,332,089 achieved credits in five subjects, including either Mathematics or English which indicate a decrease from the previous year's performance.
Furthermore, 215,267 results were withheld due to examination malpractice, which represents 11.92% of all candidates.
In a statement on August 19 via X, Obi explained that this decline highlights the urgent need for increased investment in critical sectors such as education, health, and poverty alleviation.
He noted that Nigeria's literacy rate, despite claims of being over 50%, ranks the country at 187 globally, illustrating a lack of commitment to education.
Obi criticized the federal government's funding for education, revealing that the total capital expenditure for the sector, including the Universal Basic Education Commission, was only N330.3 billion.
He argued that this is insufficient for a nation with approximately 81,520 primary schools and 23,550 secondary schools.
