The Executive Director of Africa Education Watch, Kofi Asare, has revealed that some Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE) candidates hide money in their answer booklets in an effort to sway examiners during marking.
He said this is one of several tactics some students use hoping to get preferential treatment from markers and boost their grades.
Speaking on the Citi Breakfast Show on Tuesday, August 4, Mr Asare stated that such moves can only work if a marker abandons professional ethics, adding that principled examiners would report the incident instead of taking the cash.
“In some instances, candidates put money in the examination scripts. They put money in the script for whoever is going to mark it,” he said. The EduWatch boss also expressed worry over weak funding for exam monitoring and surveillance, stressing that better systems are required to identify and stop cheating.
He urged a reform of oversight structures and more resources for bodies that run exams to ensure that breaches are properly dealt with. His remarks follow WAEC’s announcement that 601 candidates had their results cancelled in the 2026 Basic Education Certificate Examination, while 167 results have been withheld and 2,722 others are still being investigated.
