BECE cheating crackdown: 8 officials jailed, 10 others fined

Eight exam officials, who were caught in various forms of cheating last year during the BECE, have been sent to prison.

Also, ten others were fined between 100 and 200 penalty units, which comes to about GHc5,000 each. The Director-General of the Ghana Education Service (GES), Professor Ernest Kofi Davis, who announced this, added that one other official was both fined and imprisoned.

During the time he was speaking to journalists about the steps being taken to deal with exam cheating as this year’s BECE started on Monday, the GES director-general said 46 other offenders are now being processed for punishment.

Prof Davis, who announced this, said different committees sat on the cases and sent their reports GES. “We will review this report, then take it to the council, and once we get the council’s approval to start the proposed punishments, we will do so,” he said.

Explaining the different offences, Prof. Davis said 17 of the cases involved mobile phones, while 13 were involved in sharing prepared or photocopied answers. Six were involved in solving questions for candidates, also called external support.

Four had unauthorised materials, while three were involved in network sharing and collusion.Of the three remaining cases, one was theft or leakage, one was financially motivated cheating (bribery), and one was direct assistance (dictating answers).

He said regional and district directors have been told to make sure that any teacher who was involved in any form of exam cheating does not go near any exam centre.

“I wish to remind all supervisors and regional directors of education that all teachers and supervisors who were linked to exam cheating last year and are being processed for punishment are banned from exam centres.

They are not allowed to have anything to do with the exams,” Prof. Davis ordered.

READ: WAEC confirms five arrests for cheating in ongoing BECE exams