An activist group, SAVE IMO, has called for the immediate cancellation of the 2026 Imo State Common Entrance and Primary Six First School Leaving Certificate (FSLC) examinations, alleging poor planning, inadequate logistics and conditions that subjected pupils to severe hardship.
In an open letter dated July 23 and addressed to the Imo State Commissioner for Education, the group’s lead activist, Ebubeagu Ekenulo, accused the ministry of mishandling the examinations held on July 17. The group said the decision to schedule both examinations on the same day was evidence of “dereliction of planning” and unfairly placed pupils who sat for both tests at a disadvantage.
“Scheduling both high-stakes examinations for the same day was a reckless decision,” Mr Ekenulo said in the letter. “Many pupils sat for both. It set them up to fail before they entered the hall. This was not an error. It was a disregard for educational standards.”
The group also alleged that pupils at several examination centres were forced to write their papers in darkness after hours of delays, with some reportedly relying on torchlights, candles and car headlights provided by their parents. According to SAVE IMO, some centres were still conducting the examinations as late as 8pm, prompting worried parents to visit schools over concerns about the safety of their children and the integrity of the exercise.
“Parents stormed schools fearing for the lives of their children and even malpractice. Others became invigilators with flashlights,” the group said. “Is this the standard we now accept for Imo children?”
SAVE IMO further alleged that some schools received “grossly inadequate question papers”, forcing some pupils to complete the examination on Saturday, July 18, using the same question papers administered the previous day. The group said the alleged 24-hour gap created an opportunity for examination malpractice, leakage and compromise of the exercise.
“That 24-hour exposure created an open window for leakage, sorting, and malpractice,” Mr Ekenulo said, arguing that “in any credible examination body, this alone warrants automatic cancellation.”
The group urged the commissioner to order the immediate nullification of the July 17 examinations and conduct fresh examinations within 30 days, under what it described as proper supervision, adequate logistics and humane conditions. It said parents who paid separately for the examinations deserved a credible process and should not be subjected to what it called “disgrace.”
“Imo children are not an afterthought. Education is not where we cut corners to ‘save money,’” SAVE IMO said, urging the government not to “normalize this embarrassment” or repeat what it described as a failure of the examination process. The group said it would follow up the matter with the Imo State House of Assembly Committee on Education and other relevant oversight bodies.
