NECO Announces New Recruitment Process For Examiners
The National Examinations Council (NECO) has announced its transition to a digital recruitment process for internal and external examination supervisors and assistant supervisors for the Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE) and the Senior School Certificate Examination (SSCE).
This move towards digitization aims to eliminate fraudulent activities in the recruitment process, while also improving efficiency and the quality of service provided.
In a statement released to the press in Minna, Niger State capital city, by the Acting Director of Information and Digital Communication, Azeez Sani, the examination body highlighted that the shift from manual recruitment to an online system will ensure that supervisor’s nomination forms, appointment letters, and e-photo albums are all generated online.
Furthermore, the process of swapping supervisors and assistant supervisors during examinations will also be conducted online, as per NECO’s new digital approach.
Qualified teachers with the Nigeria Certificate in Education (NCE), Degree Certificate, Master’s Degree, PhD, and Professors are invited to apply as supervisors and assistant supervisors for the Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE) or Senior Secondary Certificate of Education (SSCE) internal or external.
The council previously manually recruited supervisors and assistant supervisors prior to implementing the digitalization system.
Meanwhile, an Abuja-based lawyer, Chukwuma Nwachukwu, has filed a formal request under the Freedom of Information (FOI) Act to compel the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) to release the names and scores of the top ten performers in the 2024 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME).
this action comes after JAMB’s decision to withhold specific details about its highest scorers in the recently announced results.
In his demand, Nwachukwu insisted that JAMB provide this information within seven days, citing the provisions of the FOI, which ensure public access to information held by government bodies.
The lawyer argued that the examination body’s failure to disclose the top performers contradicts transparency, especially considering that a comprehensive breakdown of the overall examination results was already made public on April 29.
The lawyer’s letter specifically requested that JAMB’s Registrar, Prof. Ishaq Oloyede, furnish details, including “The names and scores of the 10 best students and their respective performances in the above examination.”
Highlighting the legal backing for his request, Nwachukwu’s letter reads: “The above application is made under the provisions of Section 1 of the Freedom of Information Act, 2011 which provides that the right of any person to access or request information is not contingent upon demonstrating any specific interest in the information sought.”
He further warned that compliance with this request is mandatory under the FOI, noting that failure to respond appropriately could lead to legal action to enforce compliance.
Additionally, Nwachukwu expressed his willingness to pay any necessary fees associated with this request.
This legal challenge surfaces amidst revelations by JAMB that a significant portion of the candidates scored below the average mark, with over 73.7% of the 1,904,189 participants scoring less than 200 points.
