Editorial
Why do we have these exam leakages?
It is known that organised human activities are not perfect and for this reason many of the activities instituted on this earth tend to have certain problems but when it comes to exam leakages, the West African Examination Council (WAEC) cannot hide under human imperfection because examinations relate to the future of students and so ought to be organised in a leakage-free environment.
Exam leakages may come from several causes but it usually comes from within WAEC itself for which reason officers of WAEC would have to be investigated thoroughly.
The effects of these exam leakages are unpleasant because they contribute to loss of confidence in the certificates issued by WAEC to successful candidates.
Apart from this, leakages mean that the examinations will have to be organised again for the students to ensure fairness. This creates mental torture for the students but nothing is usually done to compensate them.
It is, therefore, important for WAEC officials to know that their work is very important since it involves the training of human resource in Ghana. The training of the young ones is evaluated through final examinations conducted by WAEC.
If, therefore, the security of the examinations cannot be guaranteed, then the officials at WAEC have no justification to continue to remain at post.
The Ministry of Education and other stakeholders in Ghana and West Africa must put their heads together and collaborate with WAEC to fight against exam leakages in the sub-region. This is what is needed to bring decency into the system.
Many a time, when leakages of certain papers occur, WAEC officials come out to say that they are investigating the matter after which they will deal with the culprits.
This constant excuse is no longer acceptable. The reason for this is that the examination questions are set by WAEC itself so if there are any leakages, it is that examination body that must be blamed.
The Spectator holds the opinion that, the time has come for everyone to take the issue of leakage as a serious matter and deal with it once and for all, so that this negative practice can no longer be attractive to examination criminals in the country and other parts of the sub-region.
Additionally, we think it is crucial for the examination body to consider electronic means of assessing candidates. This can be thoroughly examined by experts, so that permanent solution can be found to this issue.
We need to save ourselves from exam leakages because it is a big shame and disgrace to the examination body while causing embarrassment to other stakeholders.
This practice must stop immediately.
Dear Editor,
Valentine’s Day is just around the corner and I wish to use your respected platform to appeal to the Cocobod to make enough cocoa products available and at reduced prices.
It might interest you to know that there are a lot of people like me who hardly take time to refresh ourselves with cocoa products like chocolate and so forth.
It is occasions like this that make us refresh ourselves with chocolate and other cocoa-related products.
Gladly, inflation has dropped significantly and for ordinary citizens like us, purchasing some of these products at reduced prices is the only way we can experience this reduction.
As usual, the market women would rush to buy and sell them at exorbitant prices, forcing a lot of people to stay away from showing love to friends and families.
I, therefore, appeal to the Cocobod to make the chocolates and other products available in large quantities at vantage points to make them accessible to all.
Maxwell Alabi,
Mamprobi
Join our WhatsApp Channel now!
https://whatsapp.com/channel/0029VbBElzjInlqHhl1aTU27
Homelessness in Ghana, particularly in major cities like Accra, Kumasi, and Takoradi, is a growing crisis driven by severe housing shortages, economic hardship, and rapid urbanisation.
Thousands of people, including children, sleep on the streets, in front of stores, on pavements, or beneath footbridges at the mercy of the weather due to the lack of accessible, safe, and secure housing. Their situation is even worse when it rains since they have nowhere to hide.
In actual fact, housing infrastructure development is far behind the influx of migrants from rural areas to cities like Accra in search of better prospects, which leads to overcrowding and low-grade housing.
Although the homeless feel safe in their temporary shelters on streets and pavements, it is dangerous to their health. When they are sacked, they soon return to the streets again as they have no place of abode, so the situation becomes a cycle of ‘sacking and returning.’
This menace of homelessness comes as a result of poverty, migration, parental neglect, divorce, among others, which is affecting many women and children. In effect, children who should be in school find themselves on the streets, begging for alms.
Some of them pick whatever they can find, such as half-spoiled products from trash dumps, leftovers from the road, or food scraps. This puts their lives in jeopardy every day by exposing them to illnesses, abuse, drug usage, and human trafficking.
The homeless must be empowered with skills development and job creation opportunities such as vocational training to allow them to become economically self-sufficient and move off the streets.
Ghana cannot progress if she fails to address this menace; therefore, the government must find lasting solutions to the problem by investing in the construction of low-cost, affordable housing units, creating rent-to-own schemes to ensure low-income earners can secure shelter.
Additionally, the government should find ways to reduce the influx of people into cities by creating more jobs and investing in infrastructure in rural areas.
There is the urgent need to enhance support for victims of domestic violence and families in distress, which will go a long way to prevent them from becoming homeless, especially women who face barriers to property ownership.
It is necessary to have more shelters, feeding programmess, rehabilitation facilities, and mandatory school reintegration to address this challenge.
Addressing homelessness in Ghana requires a collaborative approach involving government action, private sector investment in low-cost housing, and support from Non-governmental Organisations (NGOs) to ensure sustainable, long-term solutions.
Join our WhatsApp Channel now!
https://whatsapp.com/channel/0029VbBElzjInlqHhl1aTU27
