President Bola Tinubu has been urged to intervene over the newly introduced ₦4,000 verification fee for candidates seeking admission into Nigerian tertiary institutions.
The charge applies to candidates who need to verify their West African Senior School Certificate Examination results as part of the admission process. The arrangement by the examination authorities has attracted criticism from education stakeholders who argue that students should not be required to pay an additional fee to authenticate results issued by the same examination bodies.
The concern comes at a time when many Nigerian families are already struggling with rising costs of food, transportation, healthcare and other essential needs.
Nearly two million candidates took the May/June 2026 WASSCE, meaning the one-time verification charge could generate billions of naira if applied broadly.
Those opposing the fee have argued that students have already paid examination fees to obtain their certificates and results. They therefore question why an additional payment should be required when the results are being verified for admission purposes.
The introduction of the verification charge also follows an earlier controversy over a proposed increase in WAEC and NECO examination registration fees, which was subsequently suspended by the Federal Ministry of Education.
Critics have called on the Federal Government to ensure that examination and certification costs do not become additional barriers to education, particularly for students from low-income households.
They have also pointed to countries such as Ghana and Sierra Leone, where governments provide substantial financial support for school certificate examinations, arguing that Nigeria should consider similar measures.
While the examination bodies have maintained that the verification system is designed to improve the admission process, strengthen the security of academic records and reduce repeated verification by different institutions, critics insist that the financial burden should not be transferred to students.
The proposed arrangement allows candidates to verify their O’Level results once, after which the verified information can be shared with the relevant tertiary institution for admission and related administrative purposes.
Those calling for the cancellation of the fee say the Federal Government should instead increase its investment in education and provide greater support for examination costs, scholarships and other educational needs.
They maintain that making education more expensive could further exclude young Nigerians from tertiary education and undermine efforts to develop the country’s human capital.
The call to President Tinubu is therefore not only for the ₦4,000 verification charge to be reconsidered, but also for the government to adopt policies that make access to education more affordable for Nigerian students.
