Abia State government has formally reintroduced school fees abolished about nine years ago in the state just as it has put measures in place to shore up its Internally-Generated Revenue (IGR)
At the inception of the administration of former governor Orji Uzor Kalu, Abia introduced a free-tuition education, relieving parents of the burden of school fees. But the system was subverted by unscrupulous operators who introduced all sorts of illegal fees which left parents and guardians groaning under heavy fees.
Commissioner for Information, Culture and Tourism, Chief John Nwokocha, told newsmen at the end of the state Executive Council (EXCO) meeting last Wednesday, that the new school fees has been christened Development Fees.
Nwokocha said that the fee regime for primary schools in urban areas is N1,500 per annum per pupil while their counterparts in non-urban primary schools would pay N600 per annum per pupil.
He also said that each student in urban secondary school would pay N3,000 per annum, while those in non-urban secondary schools would pay N1,500 per student.
The commissioner explained that EXCO approved that the fees could be split into three and paid installmentally per term.
He said that EXCO approved the fees following its adoption of a report submitted by an eight-man committee set up to articulate how government could improve on its IGR and announced that with the introduction of the new school fees, “all levies in schools have been abolished.”
Answering a question on whether the state government would still pride itself as running a free education system, he replied: “If you had followed me keenly, you would have underscored the point that all other fees have been abolished. You will agree with me that there were multifarious of fees in schools. There were some people who claimed they were collecting fees for what you call the PTA, etc. and the there were so many fees but what the state government has done is to harmonise these fees into a development fee. This is to augment what government is giving to the schools as subvention for us to have standard facilities and, of course, improve the condition of learning in the schools.”
The commissioner also announced that henceforth, all financial transactions by and with government of the state would be by electronic payment (e-payment) while anybody who has any business to do with government would be required to show a tax clearance certificate covering three years period.
“EXCO today also resolved that for every business you want to do with the Abia State government – those who are coming for contracts, registration of pupils and students in schools, you have to provide evidence of tax clearance for, at least, three years,” he said, adding, “the highlight of today’s EXCO meeting was the introduction or the launch of the e-payment system. If you are to do any business- to pay fees, levies in the state, it has to be done electronically. We have from today ceased to do any cash dealings. There are designated banks and account numbers that anybody who has anything to do or to make payments to the Abia State government would go through those processes.”
According to him, these were part of the measures taken by EXCO to plug all leakages in the revenue system of the government and shore up its IGR.