SSCE: Examiners allege delay in payment; we don’t owe anybody – NECO

Some examiners, who marked the August Senior Secondary School Certificate Examinations, SSCE, conducted by the National Examinations Council, NECO, have accused the Council of delaying the payment of their stipends.

However, the examination body said it was not true. According to NECO, the payment of the examiners allowances was completed today, Wednesday, November 13.

N38,000 stipend

Some of the examiners spoke with Vanguard in confidence. They wondered why the examination body has not paid them since August, when the marking exercise had been concluded.

“NECO has refused to pay us since August when we finished with the marking of the papers. Some of us are even suggesting we go on public protest.

“It is not that the stipend has been increased to meet with today’s cost of living and realities. But they are holding on to our money,” an examiner from Lokoja, Kogi State, said.

Asked how much they are expecting, he said: “We are to be paid N38,000 for our efforts. You can see that the money is too small.

“We are hoping that they will increase the money to a realistic level given the economic situation in the country.”

However, reacting to the allegation, the Acting Director, Information and Public Relations of NECO, Mr. Azeez Sani, said every examiner had been paid.

He said: “The National Examinations Council, NECO, has paid the allowances of all the 72,138 examiners engaged as ad hoc staff in the 2024 School-based Senior School Certificate Examination, SSCE.

“The Council actually commenced payment of the examiners on 4th October, 2024 on bank basis. This was to ensure easy reconciliation and to avoid clumsiness in the payment process.

“NECO has completed the payment of the examiners allowances as at today Wednesday 13th November, 2024, according to the payment plan of the Council.

“Also, it was discovered in the process that some examiners submitted incorrect bank details, which the Council has reconciled with the affected examiners.

“Out of the 24 banks being used for the payment, all the banks have been cleared.

“It is, therefore, incorrect and false as being speculated recently in the social media that the Council has deliberately refused to pay examiners engaged in the conduct of the 2024 SSCE Internal.

“The management advise that any person(s) engaged by the Council should seek clarification/explanation from it, on matters oblivious to them before resorting to the media .

“NECO wishes to reassure its esteemed examiners and other ad hoc staff that the Council cherishes their invaluable contributions to the effective conduct of its examination and will therefore not take their renumeration for granted.”