In a dramatic twist following the much-anticipated release of the 2025 West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE) results, the West African Examinations Council (WAEC) has been forced to shut down its result checker portal due to unexpected technical difficulties — leaving thousands of anxious candidates nationwide in a state of uncertainty and distress.
The announcement was made in a terse statement issued on Wednesday evening via the Council’s official X (formerly Twitter) handle. According to WAEC, the disruption stemmed from a technical malfunction that crippled its result access platform, waecdirect.org, mere hours after the results were made public.
> “WAEC hereby informs the general public that the result checker portal @waecdirect.org is temporarily shut down due to technical issues,” the Council said.
It, however, moved swiftly to calm nerves, assuring students, parents, and guardians that the issue was being resolved urgently.
> “The Council is working assiduously to ensure that candidates are able to access their results within the next 24 hours. We apologize for any inconvenience this might have caused,” WAEC added.
Despite the reassurances, the sudden shutdown has sparked a wave of frustration, particularly among candidates who had eagerly awaited their performance outcome. Many students took to social media platforms to voice their disappointment, sharing screenshots of failed attempts to log in and pleading with WAEC to expedite the resolution process.
The technical hitch comes at a time when WAEC had celebrated an improved performance index for the 2025 examination cycle, with over 65% of candidates earning five credits, including in core subjects like English Language and Mathematics — a significant uptick from previous years.
Observers say the high traffic from excited candidates attempting to access their results simultaneously may have overwhelmed the portal’s capacity, triggering the crash. Yet, the Council has remained silent on the exact cause of the failure, raising concerns about its digital infrastructure and readiness for high-volume engagement.
This is not the first time WAEC has encountered such a setback. Similar online glitches have been reported in previous years, especially during peak result-checking periods. Critics argue that WAEC’s recurring digital troubles highlight the need for a major upgrade in its IT systems to match the increasing digital demand and expectations of modern-day candidates.
As the wait continues, thousands of students — whose academic journeys, university applications, and future plans hinge on these results — are left in a limbo of technical silence, fervently hoping that WAEC’s promised 24-hour fix lives up to expectations.
For now, all eyes remain on WAEC to deliver a swift and lasting resolution — and ensure that history does not repeat itself in subsequent examination cycles.
PIONEER NEWS 