Education

Association Moves To Check Students’ Inter-School Transfers

Published

7 years ago

January 14, 2019

The National Association of Proprietors of Private Schools (NAPPS), FCT Chapter, says it has developed an application that will enable members to report cases of children leaving them for other schools while still owing school fees.
President of the association, Mrs Olusola Bankole, made this known in an interview with the newsmen in Abuja on Wednesday.
Bankole added that the app would also enable its members to report the movement of “teachers who commit offences in one school and decide to run away to other schools’’.
“We have emphasised training and retraining. There is something I have always told our members; what goes around will surely come around.
“If you train (teachers) and I also train them, before we know it, we will have trained teachers being recycled to our schools.
“But we are making huge effort to ensure professionalism.
“For instance, we (have) just developed an app that will enable schools to report cases of children leaving them for other schools even when they are owing school fees.
“We also intend to report teacher movement. If a teacher commits an offence in one school and decides to run away to another school, we should be able to report it and make it known.
“We are working on that; the app is ready and we only need to deploy it nationwide.
“We are not resting on our oars; personally, as a lead person in the National Association of Proprietors of Private Schools in FCT, I am not too satisfied with how far we have gone; but we have gone far.
“We have training and retraining for our teachers and even as proprietors, we keep telling ourselves the bitter truth that we need retraining and to be candid, many of us are buying into it.’’
The president of the association said that NAPPS would not accept a situation where private schools would operate below standard.
“Which profession is there that does not have quacks; we have quacks also in the private school sector.
“Since I came on board, I have actually had to suggest to some private schools to close down.
“Reason is, if you can’t run above par, that is, above what the public schools around you are doing, then you are not good enough to be a private school.
“Allow these children to go to public schools that are close by, reason is, if a school is charging N20 per day as school fees , how will they pay teachers?
“If a school is charging N5000 per term per child, how will they pay salaries to teachers? What quality of teachers will they have?
“That is not to say that there are not so many schools that are very cheap as private schools that are not doing a lot of outstanding things, which is one of the things that makes NAPPS different.
“There are many of those schools that have some of these challenges that are not our members. That’s another challenge we have.
“I can attest to it that 95 per cent of them are not our members.”

Education

Uniport Appoints Prof. Princewill R. Chike as 10th Vice-Chancellor

Published

3 days ago

June 8, 2026

The Tide

The Governing Council of the University of Port Harcourt has approved the appointment of Professor Princewill R. Chike as the 10th Vice-Chancellor of the University.

Prof. Chike, a former Commissioner for Health in Rivers State, will succeed Prof. Georgewill Owunari whose tenure ends on July 13, 2026.

A statement signed by the University’s Public Relations Officer, Dr. Sam Kpenu and made available to _The Tide_, said the appointment was made by the 17th Governing Council following the successful conclusion of the selection process.

“The process was conducted in strict compliance with the provisions of the Universities (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act and the University of Port Harcourt Act,” the statement read.

It added that the process involved the constitution of a Search Team and a Joint Council-Senate Selection Board. Both bodies carried out their responsibilities in accordance with extant laws and regulations governing the appointment of Vice-Chancellors in Nigerian universities.

According to the statement, the Pro-Chancellor and Chairman of the Governing Council, Senator Mao Ohuabunwa, congratulated Professor Chike on his appointment.

Senator Ohuabunwa expressed confidence in Prof. Chike’s ability to provide visionary leadership for the continued growth and development of the University.

Professor Princewill R. Chike is expected to formally assume office as the 10th Vice-Chancellor of the University of Port Harcourt on July 13, 2026.

By: Akujobi Amadi

Education

Education commissioner Commends WAEC Conduct in Rivers ,, Vows Sanctions for Malpractice

Published

3 days ago

June 8, 2026

The Tide

The Rivers State Commissioner for Education, Dr. Peters Nwagor, has commended the orderly conduct of the ongoing 2026 West African Senior School Certificate Examination in the state and urged schools to sustain the standard.

Dr. Nwagor gave the commendation recently during a monitoring tour of selected secondary schools in Port Harcourt and environs where the WAEC exam is ongoing.

The commissioner, who was accompanied by directors and monitors from the Ministry of Education, said he was impressed with the peaceful atmosphere at the centres visited.

“The students conducted themselves properly and wrote their papers under conducive conditions. Invigilators and supervisors also performed their duties professionally,” he stated.

Nwagor noted that the Rivers State Government had invested heavily to ensure the smooth and credible conduct of the examination across the state

He urged candidates to reciprocate government’s effort by shunning all forms of examination malpractice and focusing on their studies.

“Government has done so much to ensure successful examinations in our schools. Students should take advantage of it by remaining focused,” the commissioner said.

While no case of malpractice was recorded in the centres inspected, Dr. Nwagor warned that any principal, teacher, invigilator, or official caught aiding malpractice would face strict sanctions in line with regulations.

He also commended school administrators, teachers, WAEC officials, and security personnel for upholding the integrity of the process. Centres visited included County Grammar School, Ikwerre/Etche; Government Comprehensive Secondary School, Borokiri; Government Secondary School, Borokiri; and Pabod Model Secondary School.

By: Akujobi Amadi

Education

RSU Law Professor Calls for Periodic Review of Nigeria’s Criminal Laws

Published

3 days ago

June 8, 2026

The Tide

A Professor of Criminal Justice and Law at the Faculty of Law, Rivers State University, Nkpolu-Oroworukwu, Port Harcourt, Prof. Clifford Anaele Nwanyanwu, has advocated for periodic review of the nation’s criminal justice administration laws to reflect current societal needs and challenges.

Prof. Nwanyanwu noted that many of the criminal justice laws in use today date back to the pre-colonial era. He questioned their efficiency in addressing modern criminal justice administration, adding that the complex nature of adjudication often allows crime to thrive.

He made the call while delivering the university’s 132nd Inaugural Lecture on Wednesday at the Senate Conference Auditorium titled: “Society as Criminal Enterprise: Unravelling a Complex Justice System.”

The erudite legal scholar clarified that the lecture was not meant to condemn the country’s justice system. Instead, he said it was intended to highlight areas that require urgent attention.

He expressed concern that criminal justice practice in Nigeria is more dysfunctional than functional, and stressed that he wants to see a system that works effectively for all citizens.

“The essence of criminal justice administration is due process, and anything contrary is not it. Plea bargains help to fast-track trial processes and reduce delays,” he stated.

However, Prof. Nwanyanwu expressed worry that the sums recovered through plea bargain arrangements are often meagre compared to the wealth looted, noting that this contradicts the purpose of the arrangement.

To strengthen the system, he recommended merit-based recruitment of judicial officers with proven character and integrity. He also called for adequate funding, infrastructure development, removal of political interference, and ethical reorientation within the judiciary.

The law professor further recommended that the state should pay compensation to citizens when security officers are found culpable for arbitrary killings, in line with the principle of vicarious liability.

In his remarks, Vice-Chancellor of the university, Prof. Isaac Zeb-Obipi, commended the lecturer. He described the lecture as timely and relevant to addressing the nagging challenges of crime in society.

Prof. Zeb-Obipi expressed concern over the justice system’s inability to curb the rising rate of criminal activities in the state. He added that through inaugural lectures, the university continues to provide solution-based approaches to societal challenges.

Our correspondent reports that the thought-provoking lecture was attended by stakeholders in the judicial system, judges, magistrates, scholars, and members of the university community.

By: Akujobi Amadi