Niger State House of Assembly has directed the House Committee on Education and Legislative Compliance to investigate why the results of 30, 000 students of the state who sat for the 2019/2020 Senior Secondary School Examinations (SSCE) were withheld by the National Examinations Council (NECO).
It directed the committee to report its findings to the house within one week.
The directive follows a public outcry by parents and guardians in the state over the non-release of results of their children and wards.
The investigation was ordered after a motion on matters of urgent public importance was raised on the floor of the House by the member representing Bosso Constituency, Mallam Malik Madaki Bosso.
Bosso said NECO withheld the result of over 30,000 students from the state due to non-payment of examinations fees by the government.
“Those students who sat for the National Examinations Council in 2019/2020 respectively are yet to access their results till this moment due to the withholding of their results by NECO. This has affected students who risk forfeiting their admission into higher institutions of learning for two years”.
He described as most painful and disturbing, the withholding of results of non-indigent students who had paid their NECO fees, which were allegedly not remitted to the Council by the state ministry of Education.
He urged the house to investigate the claims without further delay
According to Bosso “some non-indigent students who paid NECO examinations fees to the state government through the ministry of education are equally denied access to results because the exam body said such fees were not remitted to it by the state government”.
The lawmakers, who took turns to contribute expressed unhappiness at the inability of students from the state to access their results due to non-payment of examination fees.
Speaking, Hon. Shaba Gbara noted that the House will not fold its hands and allow some few individuals to mess up the entire state and urged the house to as a matter of urgency, investigate the matter and ensure that justice is done.
The Speaker, Barr. Bawa Wuse after listening to their contributions directed the house committee on Education to investigate the issue and submit its report within one week.
Against this backdrop, the affected students, it would be recalled, staged a peaceful protest to NECO headquarters to register their frustration but it was leaked to the management of NECO, who swiftly alerted the state Police.
The Police quickly despatched a detachment of armed mobile policemen in about six vans who forestalled the planned protest by the students.
