Delta State House of Assembly, (DSHA), lawmakers have disagreed on a bill seeking to arrest and prosecute parents in Delta state for failing to send their children to school.
While most of the lawmakers support the bill, the Chairman House Committee on Public Petitions, Hon Matthew Omonade, opposed it.
The lawmaker, who is the member representing Ughelli North Constituency 1 on the platform of the All Progressives Congress (APC) kicked against the development on the floor of the House during Thursday’s plenary.
Omonade noted that rather than arrest and prosecute parents for their inabilities to register them in school, the state government must put parameters in place to check the growing out of school children in the state.
He blamed the growing level of poverty in the country as the reason why many parents are engaging their children on street hawking rather than ensuring that they were in classrooms during school hours across the state.
Omonade questioned the rationale behind arresting parents and guardians when government had equally failed in their responsibility to provide jobs and enabling environment for businesses to thrive.
“Government at levels must tackle the reasons why parents are finding it difficult to send their children to school, especially creating the enabling environment for businesses as well as building infrastructures”
The APC lawmaker further posited that there was a need for government of Delta to create child support for parents as it is done in develop crime to arrest the ugly trend of street hawking during school hours in the state.
“Governor Sheriff Oborevwori as a matter of urgency should direct the ministries of women affairs, community and social development, basic and secondary education and other relevant government agencies to urgently put in place necessary measures to arrest the growing out of school children” Omonade stated.
