(NECO. Photo by Guartdian Nigeria News)
The National Examinations Council (NECO) has firmly rejected claims that Government Secondary School, Olowa, in Dekina Local Government Area of Kogi State operates as a “miracle examination centre,” describing the allegation as false and inconsistent with official records.
The examination body issued the rebuttal on Friday in response to comments reportedly credited to the Kogi State Commissioner for Information and Communications, Hon Kingsley Fanwo, following Tuesday’s ab-duction of five persons linked to the ongoing 2026 Senior School Certificate Examination at the school.
While sympathising with the victims and commending the Kogi State Government and security agencies for securing the rescue of four of the five ab-ductees, NECO disputed the commissioner’s characterisation of the school, insisting it is a long-established public institution with a verifiable history of participation in national examinations.
According to a statement signed by the Council’s Acting Director of Information and Public Relations, Azeez Sani, the school is owned by the Kogi State Government, has existed for over 40 years, and has consistently presented candidates for the NECO Senior School Certificate Examination since 2000.
NECO also clarified that the school’s principal, Elder Daniel Iyamaa, one of those ab-ducted, is a Grade Level 17 officer in the Kogi State Civil Service, while the ab-ducted examination supervisor, Mr Solomon Audu, is a Grade Level 12 state government employee posted to Community Secondary School, Effin.
The Council further dismissed suggestions that the candidates involved were irregular entrants, stating that all 28 candidates registered by the school for the 2026 SSCE are legitimate students duly enrolled by the school in collaboration with the state government, rather than external candidates as had been implied.
To back its position, NECO released the school’s SSCE enrolment figures over the past five years, showing 21 candidates in 2021, 20 in 2022, 28 in 2023, 40 in 2024, and 20 in 2025.
It added that the Kogi State Government also covered examination fees for 51 candidates from the school in the recently concluded 2026 WASSCE, further affirming its status as a recognised public secondary school.
Addressing the security situation in the state, NECO disclosed that ahead of the 2026 SSCE, its Kogi State Coordinator had written to security agencies requesting enhanced protection for examination centres across the state, a move it said was informed by an earlier terrorist att@ck on Government Secondary School, Iluke, in Ijumu Local Government Area during the 2026 WAEC Senior School Certificate Examination.
Reaffirming its commitment to the integrity of public examinations, NECO said it maintains zero tolerance for examination malpractice under the leadership of its Registrar and Chief Executive, Professor Dantani Ibrahim Wushishi, noting that reforms introduced by the Council in recent years have significantly reduced malpractice cases nationwide and strengthened public confidence in its examinations.
The Council urged public officials and other stakeholders to verify facts before making public statements capable of damaging institutional reputations or causing unnecessary public anxiety.
