Exposed: How KCSE exams are stolen

A gang based in Coast Province has been stealing and selling national examinations papers for almost a decade now, the Sunday Nation can reveal.

An investigation by the Kenya National Examinations Council (Knec) and police conducted after candidates sat last year’s Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE) has found out that the gang has been involved in the racket for almost a decade now, putting in doubt the credibility of the scores obtained by thousands of candidates and the rankings of many secondary schools.

The revelations come less than two weeks before results of the KCSE exams are released.

The Knec and police investigators, who began the investigation on October 21, 2008, found that at least five of the examination papers under guard at Bura East police station in Fafi were removed and sold to the gang for Sh80,000.

The findings raise serious doubts about the effectiveness of the chief national examiner in safeguarding the examination papers after it was disclosed that the theft and sale of the papers had gone undetected since 1999.

The pilferage

The Sunday Nation has authoritatively confirmed that Knec became aware of the pilferage after the first week of last year’s KCSE and moved to seal the loopholes that were being used to remove the papers from the stores.

Previously, it was possible to buy the stolen papers weeks or even months in advance, but action by the Knec last year is said to have reduced the availability time to days, or even hours.

According to those familiar with the findings of the investigation, the well-connected and well-financed gang that has been able to bribe those assigned to guard the papers at police stations.

In some cases, examination questions have been passed to candidates in return for payment just hours before the start of the exams.

Exam papers sold out of the Bura East station included English (paper one and two), Mathematics (paper one), Kiswahili (paper one and two), Christian Religious Education (paper one), and Islamic Religious Education (paper one).

The findings of the investigation also indicate that the racket has become a money-printing machinery for many people involved in the examination process, from secondary school owners and officers to teachers and guards.

Those familiar with findings of the investigation say it recommends that at least 20 teachers, education and police officers face severe disciplinary action, including interdiction and dismissal, in connection with the theft and sale of the exam papers.

It is also expected that candidates found to be involved in the racket would have their results cancelled.

While the exams were underway last October, several candidates and individuals suspected of having sold the stolen papers were charged in a Coast police station. The case is pending in court.

Nevertheless, Knec secretary Paul Wasanga has denied that there was any theft or sale of exam papers anywhere in the country, adding that water-tight measures had been put in place during the exam period to prevent irregularities.

But he admitted there was a problem at the Bura East police station, though the Mathematics paper that was stolen never reached candidates.

“I am aware of the case but I assure you no candidate benefited from the paper(s) illegally accessed,” he said in an interview.

The gang is said to have set up an elaborate mechanism of distributing the illegally acquired examination materials, often using hired vehicles to escape notice.

The investigation found that some KCSE supervisors in some centres opened the examination materials earlier than scheduled and sent text messages to some candidates detailing the questions.

Others read the short questions to candidates over mobile phones, according to those conversant with the joint report of Knec and police.

At one Nairobi school, some candidates were found discussing questions in the Geography exam (paper two) in advance after they were leaked to them on a mobile phone.

The investigation also found that candidates in some districts were opting not to board at their schools during the examination period so they could have time to be coached on questions obtained in advance out of sight of school authorities.

Some day school candidates chose to rent houses in towns where they planned to acquire materials in advance and were often drilled at night on examination questions by teachers, polytechnic and university students.

The investigation also indicated that former KCSE candidates, and polytechnic and university students made up the majority of traffickers in illegally obtained examination materials.

Admission to public and private universities is based on the grades obtained in the Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education , meaning top grades favour students from joining the institutions.

A candidate is required to sit a minimum of seven subjects in the tests, and score an average of C+ to be admitted to any university.

But because performance has been improving over the years, public universities have sometimes raised the minimum entry grades to B plain and above.