The National Examinations Council (NECO) has rejected claims that an examination centre in Kogi State, where five people were abducted on Tuesday, is a “miracle centre,” pushing back against remarks credited to a state government official.
The abduction took place at Government Secondary School, Olowa, in Dekina Local Government Area of Kogi State. Four of the five victims have since been rescued.
In a statement signed by the Acting Director of Information and Public Relations, Azeez Sani, NECO said it sympathised with those affected and commended the Kogi State Government and security agencies for the coordinated effort that led to the victims’ rescue. However, the Council said it strongly disagreed with a statement attributed to the Kogi State Commissioner for Information and Communications, Hon. Kingsley Fanwo, who had described the school as a “miracle centre.”
School Has Operated for Over 40 Years, NECO Says
According to the statement, the Council wants to “set the record straight” on the school’s status. GSS Olowa is owned by the Kogi State Government and has existed for more than 40 years, NECO said, adding that the school has presented candidates for the NECO Senior School Certificate Examination (SSCE) since 2000.
Sani said the school’s principal, Elder Daniel Iyamaa — one of those abducted — is a Grade Level 17 officer in the Kogi State Civil Service. “The kidnapped examination supervisor, Mr Solomon Audu, is a Grade Level 12 officer employed by the state government and posted to Community Secondary School, Effin,” he said.
NECO further stated that its records confirm the abducted candidates are duly registered students of GSS Olowa, presented for the 2026 NECO SSCE by the school in conjunction with the Kogi State Government.
Council Disputes “External Candidates” Impression
The Council said its records show that the 28 candidates it registered for the 2026 SSCE at the school are bona fide students, not external candidates, contradicting what it described as the impression created by the commissioner’s remarks.
To support this, NECO published the school’s SSCE enrolment figures over the past five years:
- 2025 – 20 candidates
- 2024 – 40 candidates
- 2023 – 28 candidates
- 2022 – 20 candidates
- 2021 – 21 candidates
The Council added that the Kogi State Government also paid West African Examinations Council (WAEC) fees for 51 candidates at the same school in the recently concluded 2026 WAEC SSCE.
Security Was Sought Ahead of Exams
NECO said its State Coordinator in Kogi had, before the 2026 SSCE began, written to security agencies in the state requesting support to ensure the examination went smoothly. The Council said this step followed an earlier attack during the 2026 WAEC SSCE at Government Secondary School, Iluke, in Ijumu Local Government Area, which it described as a terrorist attack.
Council Reiterates Zero-Tolerance Stance on Malpractice
The statement also reaffirmed NECO’s position on examination integrity. Under the leadership of Professor Dantani Ibrahim Wushishi, the Council said it maintains a zero-tolerance policy on examination malpractice and has introduced reforms to safeguard the credibility of its examinations, reforms it credited with a significant reduction in reported malpractice cases over the past five years.
NECO concluded by urging public officials and other stakeholders to verify information before making public statements that could undermine the reputation of institutions or cause unnecessary public anxiety.
