Ike Onyechere, the founding chairman of Exam Ethics Marshals International (EEMI), revealed that 67% of private and public secondary schools in Nigeria function as ‘exam magic centres,’ where examination malpractices thrive.
He disclosed these findings at a news conference on Tuesday in Abuja, which focused on ‘Combating the Dangers of Illegal Levies in Schools: The Role of Parents.
Onyechere explained that many ‘magic centres’ lack the necessary infrastructure and resources to operate as legitimate schools or exam centres but still manage to secure accreditation.
“These centres tend to have small class sizes in earlier years JS1 to SS2 but large populations in exit-year classes SS3, where they generate fake continuous assessment scores,” he said.
According to Onyechere, these centres are often chaotic during examinations, with students, supervisors, and invigilators colluding to cheat.
“Parents are charged exorbitant fees, sometimes in the hundreds of thousands, for the illicit services provided by these centres, which are shared among members of the syndicates running them,” he added.