The Head of Public Affairs at the West African Examinations Council (WAEC), John Kapi, has rejected allegations that the Council deliberately targeted private schools in the 2026 Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE) results.

He said although WAEC, like any human institution, has people working within its systems, no staff member has any reason or motive to deliberately undermine private schools.

Speaking on Adom FM’s Dwaso Nsem, Mr Kapi said anyone making such allegations must be prepared to provide evidence to support them.

“That is a claim anyone making the allegation must prove, because nobody at WAEC has reasons or capacity to target private schools,” he said.

Mr Kapi also dismissed suggestions that examination leakages remain a major problem, explaining that WAEC had introduced measures over the years to close loopholes identified in the examination process.

“Leakages are a thing of the past because we are not saying it hasn’t happened before. It did sometime past,” he said.

According to him, WAEC reviewed the weaknesses that previously contributed to examination leakages and implemented measures to prevent similar incidents.

“We have worked over the years and realised the loopholes and problems, and we have put in place measures to address that,” he added.

Mr Kapi further explained that candidates are given clear instructions and guidelines on how to conduct themselves at examination centres.

He said candidates who breach those rules and have their papers cancelled cannot blame WAEC for the consequences.

“When it comes to the exams too, we have instructions and guidelines for all candidates at the exam centres. So if you flout it and your paper is cancelled, WAEC cannot be blamed,” he stated.

Mr Kapi acknowledged that WAEC is made up of people but stressed that the existence of a human element within the institution does not mean staff members would deliberately manipulate the examination process against private schools.

“People work at WAEC, but I can vouch that nobody here will target private schools,” he said.

He explained that many WAEC staff members also have children attending private schools, making it difficult to understand why anyone within the Council would intentionally seek to undermine them.

“Because we also have our children in private schools. Even though I can’t give the percentages, what reason do we have to destroy a system our children are also in?” he asked.

Mr Kapi’s comments come amid concerns from some private schools and parents over the 2026 BECE results, with allegations that some schools may have been unfairly targeted during the examination and results-processing exercise.

However, WAEC maintains that its processes are guided by established examination rules and procedures and has challenged anyone alleging deliberate targeting to provide evidence to support the claims.