Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan ruled out the possibility of mass cheating in the Transition to Higher Education Examination (YGS) but acknowledged that the head of the Student Selection and Placement Center (ÖSYM), Ali Demir, failed to successfully manage a crisis recently triggered by allegations of cheating codes used in the exam.

"We have seen that the success rate in the mathematics exam is lower than past years, which weakens the possibility of cheating in this exam. But the ÖSYM head has not managed the crisis well," the prime minister said.

His remarks came on Sunday evening on a live TV show, "Siyaset Meydanı" (The Political Arena).

Claims emerged in early April that a secret code had been used in the YGS booklets. According to claims, the answer sheet was encrypted to reveal the correct answer if read by people who knew about the code. Claims led to increased pressure on the ÖSYM and its head to find out if such a code was used in the exam.

"The matter is whether or not there was cheating in the exam. If there was, then it is dangerous. If there was no cheating, then claims of coded booklets are technical matters. ... I asked the ÖSYM head [about claims of cheating in the exam] and he said the claims do not reflect the truth. The [ÖSYM] head may not have managed the process well; however, this does not mean that there was cheating in the exam," the prime minister added. He also complained that thousands of students were "victimized" due to cheating claims.

An investigation that was immediately launched into the cheating claims concluded last week, and the results of the exam were announced on Thursday.

Cihan news agency