Rivers Schools And Illegal Levies

Recently, the Rivers State Governor, Chief Nyesom Wike directed officials of the State Ministry of Education and school principals to account for monies and other levies collected from students for the registration of Senior Secondary Schools examinations, particularly West African School Certificate, WASC and National Education Certificate, NECO.
The directive became inevitable when the visibly angry Governor learnt in a meeting with public schools principals, officials of the Education Ministry and Nigeria Union of Teachers, NUT, that despite remitting monthly overheads to the Ministry, principals of public secondary schools had continued to charge students above the normal approved fees for WASC and NECO examinations.
Consequently, he demanded written explanation of all funds collected illegally from students, bank details and the approving authority, even as he threatened sanctions on culprits who indulge in such unwholesome acts.
While we endorse the governor’s action and directive over the illegal fees and levies being charged students in public schools in the state, a thorough investigation to unravel the extent of such illegal practices has become needful. Indeed, it is unacceptable that principals would connive with ministry officials to fleece unsuspecting parents of their hard earned money.
Last year alone, 33,000 students across 534 public secondary schools in Rivers State registered for WASC and NECO examinations as internal and external candidates in the state. Each of the students was made to pay additional N3,000 as administrative cost for the exams.
It is most unfair that students would unwittingly be made to pay for an exercise that has been fully sponsored or subsidized by the government. This clearly runs against the effort of the present government in the state to make public schools attractive and education affordable to the people.
That parents, who have already been going through hardship this austere times and as a result, can hardly afford basic needs of life, would be ripped-off by public servants is highly condemnable and unacceptable.
The explanation by the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Education, Dr Patricia Ogbonnaya and the Director of Secondary Education, Mrs Mae Solomon that they arrived at the levies following meetings held between them, Nigeria Union of Teachers and All Nigeria Confederation of Principals of Secondary Schools, ANCOPSS during the immediate past administration should not suffice as an excuse. That no formal memorandum had been written to Governor Wike to seek an approval for the levies charged, even after consistent receipt of monthly overheads makes the officers culpable.
According to the Governor, the officials stand accused of failing to utilise the Ministry of Education’s monthly overheads judiciously and passing unnecessary financial burden to less-privileged parents in the state.
The Tide therefore wants an immediate end to the extra charges for the exminations and other sundry illegal levies being charged in the Rivers public schools. Ministry officials and principals found guilty should be made to refund such monies which the already impoverished parents had paid.
In addition, we throw our weight behind the Governor’s promise to commence a cleansing process in the Ministry of Education and the public schools in order to reposition them for greater performance.
In these austere times, pupils and parents should not be subjected to incalculable pains by compelling them to pay such unnecessary levies. Enough of the rot and illegal levies.
We also urge the state government to extend its searchlight on private schools which are also guilty of extortion through all manner of levies. The Tide approves any effort geared towards ensuring that sanity returns to our educational system. The time to act is now.