The regional officers of the National Council for Civic Education and Development (NaCCED) have embarked on their respective mask up to save lives, social distancing and clean examination campaign aimed at ensuring more people observe COVID-19 preventive measures especially when daily figures are on a downward trend, and to ensure pupils avoid exam malpractices. The campaign was launched after the national office did a series of civic educational activities aligned to one of its programs.
It can be recalled last year pupils in external examination classes were protesting against strict examination measures and rules aimed at addressing malpractices. NaCCED chairman Ibrahim Kalilu Totangi said, “In our work as a government institution that is committed to promoting civic knowledge, nurturing civic skills, and promoting civic actions, we reckon that promoting ethical behaviour is part of our mandate. The council therefore sees the compelling need to intervene by mounting a civic campaign to promote clean examination as we believe cheating constitutes corruption and a serious threat to quality human capital development.”
This latest NaCCED clean examination campaign by the council has captured the attention of stakeholders from across the country especially in the provinces where the regional officers are visiting schools, communities, heads of institutions, traditional and religious leaders, and parents and students. Regional Coordinator of NaCCED North-west, Mohamed Kamara said his team had visited selected secondary schools in Port Loko District and engaged pupils and school authorities on the clean exams campaign. He said they are working with the Inter-Religious Council leadership during the campaign and have embarked on house-to-house sensitisations on social distancing, masking up, and frequent hand washing to contain coronavirus in the country.
The regional campaign in the East, according to Regional Coordinator Brima Janneh, has been stretched to schools with regular distribution of face masks and posters, adding that they also do radio discussions and other stakeholder/community engagements.
Ibrahim Jalloh, Northern Region Coordinator, said they have taken the campaign to another level with the involvement of the District Emergency Operation Centre and the communication and social mobilisation pillar in all their activities. Despite their schools and community engagements, he said he attends regular meetings and briefings on campaign outcomes and partners with key stakeholders in the fight. Jalloh said the clean exam campaign will contribute to government’s Free Quality Education programme especially in their direct engagement with pupils and school administrations, calling the campaign phenomenal.
The Southern District Coordinator, Paul Sengeh said they have had several clean exam and mask up campaigns with increased media engagements, raised awareness and distribution and proper use of face masks in the district, hence have raised more awareness on the importance of clean exams in that part of the country.
The National Chairman, Ibrahim Kalilu Totangi, said, “The National Council for Civic Education and Development believes that effective engagement and sustained communication and information dissemination are influencers of civic behaviours and attitudes, which usher in corresponding positive national development and growth across the different layers of society.” He urged parents and stakeholder to remind their pupils on the importance of clean exams and deter them from all forms of examinations cheating.
By Mohamed Kabba