The father of the candidate who defecated on himself during the just-ended Basic Education Certificate Examination has asked for compensation from the invigilator and supervisors of the centre.

The boy (name withheld) found himself in that embarrassing situation as a result of the refusal by an invigilator to allow him to use the washroom.

Pastor Samuel Otoo, the father, said he was asking for compensation because the invigilator's action had caused his son to suffer an emotional trauma and national embarrassment.

In addition, he thought the situation might affect his son's grades and his chances of getting admission to a senior high school. The 17-year old boy, who was writing his Social Studies paper two at an examination centre at Acherensua in the Asutifi South District in the Brong Ahafo Region, had a stomach upset but was refused permission by the invigi1ator in spite of the boy’s repeated pleas to allow him to attend to the call of nature.

The invigilator allegedly told the boy that he was not going to grant him permission and that the boy could ease himself there if he chose to.

Pastor Otoo told the Daily Graphic on telephone that his son could no longer contain the situation under which the unfortunate incident occurred.

He said his son would need time to get himself together and that the family, chiefs and elders were doing all they could to help him to regain his confidence.

The candidate's father explained that his son could not write a scheduled paper for that afternoon because he had to go home and wash down after he had soiled himself.

For his part, the candidate told the Daily Graphic that he would not be discouraged by the unfortunate incident and that he was determined to continue with his education.

The candidate, who is the fourth of seven children, including two girls, said he would like to become a medical doctor in future and will learn hard to achieve that objective.

When contacted, the Minister of Education, Science and Sports, Prof. Dominic Fobih said his office was yet to receive an official report on the issue.

Meanwhile the Akyerensua District Director of Education, Mr George Amanor Kyeremeh, has said the continuous assessment marks of the candidate will be used to grade him.

Mr Kyeremeh indicated that it was not possible for the candidate to write the papers he missed and that the only thing that could be done was to use his continuous assessment records.

Meanwhile, the headquarters of the WAEC is yet to receive a report on the incident.

According to the Council, reports on the examination, which began on Monday, were normally sent to the headquarters at the end of the examinations.

The Public Affairs Officer of WAEC, Mrs Agnes Tei-Cudjoe, said once the reports were received, a committee would be set up to study individual cases and take decisions on them accordingly.

She said candidates were allowed to use the toilet or urinal provided they sought permission from the invigilator in charge, adding that sometimes candidates are escorted by invigilators.


Source: Daily Graphic