Nairobi — For the past two weeks, media reports have isolated cases of irregularity in the current Form Four examinations. Curiously, the Kenya National Examinations Council has resorted to denials even when there was evidence that something was going wrong.

Amid the denial though, the council, to its credit, did what was really the natural thing to do -- it commissioned a police investigation to verify the claims. The findings of the probe, which form the basis of our lead story on Saturday, make interesting reading.

Tacitly, there is admission that some examination officials, working in cahoots with unscrupulous traders, have been opening bags carrying the exam papers earlier than usual and sending to candidates the questions through the mobile phone.

Notably, has tough measures to stem exam cheating, like changing the timetable to fit all the papers in the morning to give no room for short-cuts. But the crooks do not sleep, they upped the ante in the game.

Matters are made worse by the fact that we have created a culture of dishonesty. Hard work no longer counts as those who have short-cuts have their way. Parents, teachers and candidates alike aggressively look for the easiest way to pass exams, hence they provide reader fodder for the cheats.

Clearly, the vice of exam cheating should make all of us worried. We need to ask some critical questions; for instance, do we adore good grades so much that we don't care how our children obtain them? Have we reduced education to passing exams, rather than acquiring life skills?

The exam council has to disabuse itself from denials and intensify its security systems to eliminate cheating. It is also time we examined the whole education practice and asked whether or not the vice is a symbol of a failing system. Similarly, we need to ask if this is not a symptom of a society bereft of values.