Port Harcourt – The Chairman, Rivers State Universal Basic Education Board (UBEB), Mr Fyneface Aka, says the state government is determined to end illegal fees and levies in public schools.
Aka told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Port Harcourt on Tuesday that the state government would sanction any head teacher found guilty of collecting illegal fees and levies from pupils and students.
“Any head teacher that is investigated and found guilty of collecting illegal fees from pupils in any government owned schools in the state will face the full weight of the law,” he said.
Aka said that the measure had become necessary to ensure that illegal fees were wiped out of state-owned schools.
According to him, only the state government has powers to authorise fees in schools in the state.
He described government’s decision as a welcomed development, adding that it would promote discipline among administrators of public schools.
He said the continued extortion by some head teachers was because attention was not paid to ending corruption in the school system.
“If adequate attention is given to the challenges of extortion in public schools such issues will have been completely wiped out of the system.
“It’s so sad that while the state government is struggling to fund education with it’s limited resources, some head teachers are making money for themselves through illegal levies from our children.
“Thank God, that it’s no longer business as usual because whoever indulges in such act will be dismissed from service,” he said.
The UBEB chairman also disclosed that the state government had commenced school monitoring programme.
He said that the monitoring programme would enable the government know the number of absent teachers and issue appropriate punishment.
He enjoined teachers in the state to contribute to national development as they carry out their tasks.
