Wike Dissolves State Universal Basic Education Board …Abolishes Fees In Public Schools

Rivers State Governor, Chief Nyesom Wike has dissolved the Rivers State Universal Basic Education Board (RSUBEB).
A statement by the Special Assistant to the Governor on Electronic Media, Simeon Nwakaudu, last night, said the dissolution takes immediate effect.
The Governor, according to the statement, directed members of the board to hand over all property and documents of the Board in their possession to the most senior officer.
Meanwhile, The Rivers State Government has announced the abolition of all forms of fees and levies in all state-owned primary and secondary schools in the state.
The state Governor, Chief Nyesom Wike announced this, last Monday, in a meeting with heads of primary, junior secondary and senior secondary schools, schools board, state Universal Basic Education Board and other government agencies generating revenues for the state.
At the meeting which was held in Government House, Port Harcourt, the governor also directed that all forms of payment to revenue generating agencies be made through the Rivers State Internally Generated Revenue Account.
Wike said, from henceforth, the state government would be sending allocations monthly for the running and operations of the agencies and all public schools.
The governor said: “From today henceforth, no child either in primary or secondary school should pay fees and levies in any school across the state.
“The monies you collect from these children are first used for your personal purposes.
“If I hear that any school head collects any fees or levies, be they examination, NECO, WAEC fees, that school head would be sanctioned”, Wike cautioned.
Wike warned that the state government would not only dismiss any school head found collecting such illegal fees or levies but would also prosecute such person.
He directed the state Ministry of Education, Rivers State Senior Schools Management Board and the State Universal Basic Education Board to monitor the public schools across the state to ensure full compliance with the directive.
“Government will work out grants that will be sent to the schools for their regular management and operations”, he said.
The governor noted that his administration funds the salaries, allowances, examinations and equipment of all public schools.
Wike, who regretted that parents were forced to pay such fees and levies at this moment of harsh economic situation, assured parents and guardians that his administration remains committed to the provision of quality education that is accessible to all, including the less-privileged.
The governor promised parents that: “I have abolished all fees and levies, and it will never happen again. Nobody should collect fees and levies from the children of the less-privileged”.
The school heads celebrated the new directive of the Rivers State governor, praising the wisdom behind the decision.
Similarly, the governor also directed all payments to government money generating agencies through the state internally generated revenue account.
He particularly announced that payment for all advertisements and other services of the state-owned media houses, including Rivers State Television (RSTV), Rivers State Broadcasting Corporation (Radio Rivers), Rivers State Newspaper Corporation (RSNC) and Garden City Radio be made direct to the state IGR account.

Chris Oluoh