431 forced to sit for SPM papers after floods

PETALING JAYA: More than 400 Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia (SPM) 2022 candidates in 17 centres will have to sit for their papers later after floods forced the examination to be called off in some places.

The examination will be rescheduled for these candidates who could not sit for the exams due to the floods, the Education Ministry said.

In a statement yesterday, the ministry said a total of 431 candidates were left stranded due to floods and could not sit for the exams at the designated examination centres or nearby centres.

“The ministry, through the Examinations Council, is trying to gather information on all the affected candidates, and the SPM 2022 exams will be rescheduled for these candidates,” it said.

The ministry said 17 examination centres in Johor, Pahang and Sarawak were affected by the downpour on Wednesday.

“Of the total, roads leading into seven exam centres have been cut off (due to the floods) and are not accessible to vehicles,” it added.

Johor and Pahang were the worst hit, with 195 candidates affected.

However, these candidates have been transferred to nearby examination centres with the help of government agencies.

The ministry advised candidates to immediately inform their schools or state education departments if they were unable to attend the exams.

Candidates could also contact the Examinations Council and the state education department’s operations room nationwide.

“The exam will be rescheduled for these candidates upon confirmation from the state education director,” it added.

The ministry said it had taken measures in line with standard operating procedure to ensure that the exams went on smoothly even during the floods.

A total of 403,637 candidates are taking the SPM exams, which started on Feb 20. It is slated to end on March 15.

This involved 3,355 examination centres nationwide.