By Manas James Okony
35 pupils, including 7 girls, in Jonglei State’s Nyirol County, have missed the Certificate of Primary Education (CPE) examinations that ended on November 22, due to concerns over insecurity.
Ter Mun Jok, the county’s education director, informed No. 1 Citizen Daily Newspaper that the affected candidates were part of a group of 65 pupils who had registered to participate in the national exams.
He stated that fears of being targeted in revenge killings led to their absence.
“Among the 65 registered pupils, including 10 girls, only 30 candidates, with just 3 females, showed up for the exams. The remaining pupils, primarily from the Riang area, did not attend the designated examination centers at Gai Tut and Majok,” he explained.
Ter highlighted the tensions among rival communities, as contributing factors.
County Commissioner James Bol Makuey expressed regret over this unfortunate situation, noting that efforts to encourage the students to attend their first CPE exams had been unsuccessful.
“Out of the 65 registered pupils, 34 did not show up, and only 31 were able to take their exams starting Monday. Recent conflicts have driven some students to seek safety in places like Ethiopia, Juba, and remote villages within the county. We made attempts to locate and bring them in for the exams, but unfortunately, we were unable to do so,” he stated.
At least Seventy-Nine Thousand and Ten [79,010] candidates across the country were believed to have sat for the examination that concluded last week.
Out of the Seventy-Nine Thousand and Ten total number, Forty-Three Thousand Two Hundred and Thirty-Five [43,235] are male.
While, Thirty-Five Thousand Seven Hundred and Thirty-Five [35,735] are female, sitting in Five Hundred and Fifty-One [551] centers across the country.