The National Examinations Council, NECO has released the results of the 2026 Senior School Certificate Examination, SSCE Internal, with 804,948 candidates, representing 58.67 per cent, obtaining five credits and above, including English Language and Mathematics.

The results were released 63 days after the last paper of the examination was written.

Registrar of NECO, Prof. Dantani Wushishi, announced the results at a press conference in Minna, Niger State, on Thursday.

Wushishi said 1,378,048 candidates registered for the examination, while 1,371,992 candidates sat for the exercise, which commenced on June 15 and ended on July 23, 2026.

He disclosed that 1,162,118 candidates, representing 84.70 per cent, obtained five credits and above, irrespective of their performance in English Language and Mathematics.

The NECO registrar also announced a significant decline in examination malpractice, saying 1,406 candidates were involved in various forms of malpractice in 2026, compared with 3,878 candidates recorded in 2025.

He said the figure represented a 64.74 per cent reduction in examination malpractice.

Wushishi thanked President Bola Tinubu for reappointing him for a second tenure as NECO registrar, as well as the Minister of Education, Dr Tunji Alausa, for his confidence in his leadership.

He also commended security agencies, particularly the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, NSCDC, and the Department of State Services (DSS), for their vigilance, presence and support during the examination.

According to him, the agencies’ efforts helped reinforce discipline, deter wrongdoing and protect the integrity of the examination.

Wushishi reassured stakeholders and the public that NECO would remain committed to its mandate and continue to uphold the integrity of its examinations.

The Medical Director of Multicare Hospital in Makurdi, Benue State, Dr. Jonah Ogbaji, who was reportedly abducted while attending to patients, on Wednesday night, has been found in police custody.

According to report,the incident happened within the premises of the hospital located at Ankpa Quarters ward in Makurdi.

A daughter of Ogbaji was said to have raised the alarm that her father had been abducted.

The doctor was reportedly whisked away by some people in a Toyota Sienna vehicle.

The daughter said that the family had visited several police stations across Makurdi in an effort to establish his whereabouts, but to no avail.

The daughter later informed journalists that the family had gotten a clue that their father was whisked away by the police sent from Abuja, saying his offence is still unknown.

However, the Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO) for Benue command, DSP Peter Aondongu, confirmed the development, saying he was arrested by a special squad of the police over an ongoing investigation.

“The Command has received enquiries regarding reports of the alleged abduction of a medical doctor and owner of a hospital in Makurdi.

“Upon verification, the report is false. The doctor was not abducted. He was arrested yesterday (Wednesday) at his hospital by operatives of the Special Tactical Squad (STS) attached to the Force Intelligence Department (FID), Abuja, in connection with an ongoing investigation.

“The specific circumstances surrounding the investigation are not yet known to the Command.

“Members of the media and the general public are therefore advised to disregard reports of his alleged abduction or kidnapping, as they are false,” the PPRO stated.

Residents have staged protest in Burutu Local Government Area of Delta State over the inability of the council chairman to provide basic amenities.

To drive home their demands, the protesters seized the official speedboat belonging to the council chairman, Mr Julius Takeme.

Vowing to sustain the protest until the council addressed their demands, they lamented that many residents had died due to the poor state of healthcare in the area, while the council boss remained unconcerned.

The action was part of an ongoing protest over the deplorable state of the council’s only government hospital and the general neglect of infrastructure at the LGA headquarters.

The protesting residents accused the chairman of poor performance and failure to fix the LGA’s sole hospital, which they said lacked basic amenities.

“There are no doctors, no nurses and no drugs. People are dying daily in Burutu because we don’t have a functional hospital.

“Many residents have died due to the lack of drugs and water despite huge allocation,” a resident lamented.

According to report, the demonstrators also decried the lack of potable water, electricity and other basic amenities at the council headquarters.

They expressed frustration that, despite the huge budgetary allocation to Burutu LGA, the situation at the headquarters was worse than in the individual villages that make up the council.

“We have received billions, yet Burutu town has no light, no water, no hospital. Our villages are even better than the headquarters,” a demonstrator stated.

“We will not back down until the needful is done. We need doctors, nurses, drugs and water for our people,” he declared.

The residents called on the Delta State Government to intervene urgently to prevent a further breakdown of law and order in the LGA.

Efforts to get a reaction from the chairman’s office were unsuccessful, but an aide confirmed that the chairman might be waiting for a directive from Governor Sheriff Oborevwori the report said.