NECO Probes 38 Schools Over Mass Cheating in 2025 SSCE

The National Examinations Council (NECO) has launched investigations into cases of mass cheating involving 38 schools across 13 states during the conduct of the 2025 Senior School Certificate Examination (SSCE Internal).

Registrar of the council, Prof. Ibrahim Wushishi, disclosed this in Minna, Niger State, on Wednesday while announcing the release of the 2025 SSCE results. He said the affected schools would be summoned to the council for discussions before appropriate sanctions are imposed.

According to him, the mass cheating cases formed part of 3,878 instances of malpractice recorded in this year’s examination. The figure represents a significant drop compared to 10,094 cases recorded in 2024.

Wushishi explained that nine supervisors were also recommended for blacklisting over misconduct ranging from aiding and abetting to lateness, assault, unruly behavior, poor supervision, and insubordination. The affected officials included three in Rivers, one in Niger, three in the FCT, one in Kano and one in Osun State.

He also drew attention to a disruption in Lamorde Local Government Area of Adamawa State, where communal clashes between July 7 and 25, 2025, interrupted examinations in eight schools. A total of 13 subjects and 29 papers were affected. Discussions are already underway with the state government to ensure the affected candidates sit for their exams.

“The Council is determined to safeguard the integrity of its examinations. We will not hesitate to sanction any school or official found culpable in malpractice or negligence” Wushishi stated.

Despite the malpractice concerns, the registrar reported improved performance. Out of 1,367,210 registered candidates, 1,358,339 sat for the exams. Of this number, 818,492 candidates, representing 60.26 per cent, obtained five credits and above including Mathematics and English. A larger group of 1,144,496 candidates, representing 84.26 per cent, secured five credits and above irrespective of the two core subjects.

The council also recorded 1,622 candidates with special needs, comprising 941 with hearing impairments and 191 with visual impairments.

In the state-by-state breakdown, Kano led with 68,159 candidates (5.02 per cent) who obtained five credits and above including Mathematics and English. Lagos followed with 67,007 (4.93 per cent), while Oyo came third with 48,742. By contrast, Gabon, one of NECO’s foreign centres, recorded no candidate with five credits and above in the core subjects.

Looking ahead, Wushishi revealed that the council would streamline the SSCE to 38 subjects in line with the revised national curriculum. This, he said, would shorten the examination calendar and reduce the waiting time for results.

Fielding questions from newsmen, the registrar emphasised NECO’s commitment to transparency and strict supervision, stressing that the decline in malpractice cases was proof of the council’s determination to protect the integrity of its examinations