Presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress, ADC, Atiku Abubakar, has reacted to the Federal Government’s decision to suspend the proposed increase in West African Senior School Certificate Examination, WASSCE, and the National Examinations Council, Senior School Certificate Examination, registration fees
Atiku, in a statement by his spokesperson, Phrank Shaibu, on Monday, said that Nigeria is not a laboratory for ‘reckless policy’.
The Federal Government on Monday announced the suspension of WAEC and NECO registration fee increases amid backlash.
Reacting, Atiku said the decision has vindicated the concerns he raised when he warned that pricing public examinations beyond the reach of ordinary Nigerians would deepen educational inequality, worsen the out-of-school children crisis, and deny countless brilliant but indigent students the opportunity to pursue higher education.
“The suspension is welcome, but it also raises an uncomfortable question: why must this government always wait for public outrage before correcting policies that should never have been conceived in the first place?
“Governing is not a laboratory for reckless experimentation. Sound governments consult before they decide, not after Nigerians have been subjected to needless anxiety and uncertainty.
“It is becoming a disturbing pattern. This administration announces harsh policies with little evidence of meaningful consultation, only to retreat when confronted by overwhelming public opposition. That is not responsive governance; it reflects poor policy formulation.
“The purpose of leadership is to anticipate the consequences of public policy before it is implemented. A government that repeatedly relies on public resistance to discover its mistakes is admitting, whether intentionally or not, that it is disconnected from the daily realities of its citizens.
“The proposed examination fee hike would have erected yet another financial barrier before millions of Nigerian children whose families are already crushed by inflation, rising transportation costs, soaring electricity tariffs, and declining purchasing power,” he stated.
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