As schools resume for new academic session in Kwara State, the state government has warned school principals against collection of illegal fees in secondary schools in the state.
The government said that the new entrants should not pay more than N7,430 and N9,580 for Parents-Teachers Association (PTA) levy and books for junior and senior secondary schools respectively.
The permanent secretary, Kwara State Ministry of Education and Human Capital Development, Mrs Mary Adeosun, gave the warning during a meeting with principals of secondary schools in Ilorin, the state capital.
Adeosun said that any principal caught collecting more than the approved PTA levies by the government will be sanctioned according to the civil service rules.
The permanent secretary, therefore, solicited the support of the school heads for the administration of Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq, who she said was wholeheartedly committed to the welfare of teachers while also making huge investments in the education sector.
She called for sanity and discipline across the schools and urged the principals to tolerate one another to allow peace to reign in their respective schools.
She urged the principals to keep their students indoor, saying any school whose students are found roaming the streets risks government sanctions.
She also reminded them that no principal should admit new students into SS1 without the Basic Education Certification Examination (BECE) result, and where there is overpopulation in school, the students should move to neighbouring schools.
“Also, Vice Principal Academics should take charge of all examinations in the school and cautioned that staff should not be used as examination officers, warning that any school found wanting will be sanctioned,” she stated.
She asserted that “no NGOs, Old Students or Mission bodies, community or individual should be above the government of the State.
“Therefore, there must be appropriate permission from the government before anyone is allowed to carry out anything in the schools,” Adeosun added.
On the issue of PTA levy, the Permanent Secretary declared: “Henceforth, the ministry will deploy auditors to all secondary schools in the state to know the status of their account.”
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