The Senate has summoned the Minister of Education, Tunji Alausa, as well as the Head of the National Office of the West African Examinations Council (WAEC), Amos Dangut, to explain the introduction of new guidelines for the 2025/2026 Senior Secondary Certificate Examination (SSCE).

The decision followed a motion raised by Sunday Karimi (APC, Kogi West) during plenary on Tuesday.

He argued that the new guidelines had abruptly altered subject requirements for students preparing to sit for the May/June 2025/2026 examinations.

During plenary, Karimi expressed concern that the changes, which introduced new subjects into the curriculum, were being imposed on students who had not been adequately prepared.

Citing Orders 41 and 51 on urgent matters of national importance, Karimi warned that the directive mandated all SS3 students nationwide to immediately switch to a curriculum that was originally scheduled to take effect in two years, intended for students currently in SS1 who are expected to write WAEC in the 2027/2028 cycle.

According to him, the new policy means each SS3 student will be required to take two or three additional subjects in the upcoming May/June examinations, despite having never been taught the courses and lacking sufficient preparation.

Lawmakers backed the motion, cautioning against what he described as a hasty and poorly planned implementation.

“We wake up and think of an idea, and begin to implement it. For a new subject to start, citizens should be well-informed and prepared,” Senator Adams Oshiomhole said during the plenary.

“Do we have enough teachers? Have we prepared the laboratories? There is no evidence of that. We should not plan in a way that will bring embarrassment to the country.”

Idiat Adebule, representing Lagos West, called for a thorough investigation into the matter, stressing that decisions of this nature typically involve the National Council on Education.

Another lawmaker representing Ogun West, Solomon Adeola, added that no student should be examined on subjects they have not been adequately taught, noting that proper instruction must precede any assessment.

Following deliberations, the Senate resolved to summon the Minister of Education for a meeting and a public hearing with the Senate Committee on Basic and Secondary Education.

The Senate proposed that the Federal Government and WAEC should exempt current SS3 students from writing the 2026 WAEC under the new curriculum.

It said the updated WAEC guidelines should apply only to students presently in SS1.