The Honourable Commissioner, Ministry of Education Dr KCK NWANGWA during a radio program in Aba reiterated the resolve of government to carry on with its directive to shut down illegal schools and schools operating below the minimum standards set by the state’s ministry of Education for the establishment of Private Schools.
According to the Honourable Commissioner government as reasonable grounds to believe that the new policy will aid its determination to revamp the education he said that as part of efforts to make sure that the ministry of education serves the Abia parents and the Abia Child better, and to make sure that the full implementation of the closure of Schools run in residential buildings, Warehouses, Church halls, Village/Town halls and other make-shift places becomes easier, the Ministry of Education have decided to extend the reopening of Public and Private Nursery, Primary and Secondary Schools for the Second term to Monday January 13, 2020.
This he said is to enable parents to have more time to move their children from these CLOSED SCHOOLS to the Approved Private and Public Schools (Schools in their own School Compounds) of their choice.
In addition, he said the Ministry is appealing to Approved Schools within the state to receive new intakes from the closed schools and allow them to use their old School Uniforms for sometime before changing into the new one.
He also spoke about the directive given to Private Schools to allow parents arrange payment plans, when needed, to make sure that the process does not affect any Child’s education.
And assured that the Ministry of Education will appeal to everyone to help the Government to give the Abia Child the right education in the right environment.
Dr Nwangwa responding to questions about poor standard of Education said the Ministry had concluded plans to begin the implementation of a General Promotion Examination for all schools in Abia State both private and public schools to ensure that a central assessment of the quality of Education maintained and guaranteed.
The Commissioner had on December 22, 2019 issued a press statement directing that the Abia Child be educated in the right environment and by the right teachers.
The statement expressed the determination of the Ministry of Education to take the following decisions with immediate effect:
1. All Private Nursery, Primary and Secondary Schools presently operating in Residential buildings, Warehouses, Church halls, Village/Town halls are hereby CLOSED DOWN and all the pupils and students MUST never go back to these schools from next term.
2. Parents that have their wards in these schools should use this holidays to make all necessary arrangements to relocate these pupils/students to Government and Approved Schools having standard School compounds. Parents are particularly encouraged to take advantage of the free education program as well as the School Feeding Program of the Government to take their wards to Government Schools instead of these CLOSED Schools.
3. Any School Proprietor that has a school in any of these above mentioned places that fails to comply to this directive and decides to open by January will have himself/herself/themselves to blame for any severe measures that will be applied.
4. Parents are strongly advised to make sure they will not continue to patronize these Schools. The education of the Abia Child is so important that we cannot continue to allow people to toy with such issues.
