The West African Examinations Council (WAEC) has withheld the results of 167,486 candidates who sat the 2026 Computer Based West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE) for School Candidates over alleged examination malpractice. The affected results represent 8.59 per cent of the 1,950,726 candidates who wrote the examination, a slight improvement from the 9.7 per cent recorded in 2025. Announcing the release of the results in Lagos, Head of WAEC’s Nigeria National Office, Dr Amos Dangut, attributed the development to the growing use of mobile phones in examination halls and organised cheating involving some schools.
Dr Dangut disclosed that supervisors and invigilators found aiding candidates during the examination had been arrested and would face disciplinary measures through the appropriate state ministries of education. He explained that results marked as “withheld” are still under investigation and should not be mistaken for cancelled results, noting that final decisions would be taken by the Nigeria Examinations Committee after reviewing each case.
WAEC advised affected candidates to remain calm and promptly contact their school principals or examination officers for guidance. The Council also directed candidates to use its official Notice of Examinations Malpractice portal to check the reasons for the withheld status where available and submit representations for consideration. Candidates were urged to rely only on official WAEC communication channels, avoid fraudsters claiming they could facilitate the release of withheld results, and patiently await the outcome of investigations, which may take several weeks or months.
The Council further noted that candidates whose results remain under review may still apply to tertiary institutions using an awaiting result status, although final clearance will depend on the outcome of the investigation. WAEC also disclosed that the results of candidates sponsored by states owing the Council may remain unreleased until outstanding payments are settled, while advising parents and candidates to disregard unverified reports or lists circulating on social media regarding mass withholding of results.