…To recruit additional teachers
Stephen Ukandu, Umuahia
Abia State Government has threatened to deal ruthlessly with principals and school heads engaging in collection of illegal fees and levies in public schools, insisting that primary to junior secondary three “remains free and compulsory.”
Briefing newsmen on the outcome of this week’s State Executive Council meeting, Commissioner for Information, Prince Okey Kanu, said that henceforth, anyone caught collecting fees or charges in public schools under any guise would be sanctioned.
The Commissioner explained that only “students from SS1 to SS3, pay a reduced tuition fee of N3,300 only,” maintaining that all other classes enjoy free and compulsory education.
Kanu, therefore, warned principals and heads of schools “who surreptitiously collect school fees and levies despite the state government’s free education policy for primary schools and junior secondary school students,” to desist or regret their actions.
“By this warning all offenders henceforth, would be made to face the full wrath of the law including possibly losing their jobs.
“The state government has come up with a deliberate policy of providing imprest funds for routine expenses by principals and heads of schools. Consequently, those who engage in these dishonest and corrupt acts do not have any justifiable reasons to continue to do so,” Kanu said.
Speaking further, Kanu disclosed that education consultants, Education Reformation and Innovation Team (ERIT), would be training about 2, 200 teachers across the state as part of the ongoing reforms in the education sector.
According to him, the initiative is designed to enhance teaching quality and improve learning outcomes in the public schools.
He said the final part of the teachers’ recruitment exercise, which involved the verification of certificates and oral interviews, had been concluded.
According to him, about 7,000 applicants who scored 45 percent and above along with 180 persons with disabilities were shortlisted and interviewed.
“Candidates who scored between 40 and 44 percent were placed on a reserve list, to address the possible short falls that may arise due to absenteeism or disqualification.
“It is worthy to note that a 30-man panel compromising 6 professors, 16 PhD holders , and very senior educationists from Abia State University, Uturu; Micheal Okpara University, Umudike; the Colleges of Education in the state; retired permanent secretaries, etc participated in the interview.
“It is an indication that the very high standards set at the beginning of the teachers recruitment exercise have been maintained all through. Additionally, the state’s interpreter or sign language expert was on hand to help out those with disabilities,” Prince Kanu stated.
Kanu said Government had approved the conduct of another round of teachers’ recruitment exercise to give those who could not participate in the first phase a chance to participate.
“The outcome of the second round of recruitment interview would afford the Ministry of Basic and Secondary Education the opportunity to have a data bank of very qualified teachers to draw from any time the need for teachers arises,” he said.
Adding his voice, the Commissioner for Basic Education, Elder Goodluck Ubochi, said that the upcoming recruitment exercise will focus particularly on technical and vocational subjects, where teacher shortages are most acute, pointing out that many individuals with expertise in certain areas not covered in the existing teacher database would be considered.
Ubochi explained that the surge in student and pupils’ population had placed additional pressure on available teaching staff, and added that the government aims at building a “data bank” of qualified teachers who can be deployed when needed, to avoid the delays experienced in the past.
