The Joint Action Front (JAF), Oyo State chapter has called for the abortion of the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed between the Oyo State government and the Government College Ibadan Old Boys Association (GCIOBA) for the takeover of the school.
Secretary, JAF, Oyo State, Abiodun Bamigboye, alongside some Chairmen of the Parents Teachers Association (PTA) of the school, community leaders and heads of affiliate unions, made this call while addressing a press conference, in Ibadan, on Thursday.
Reading the JAF address, Bamigboye said the union feared that the GCIOBA has an agenda to privatise and commercialise education in Oyo State.
JAF held that schools may be returned to missionaries who began the schools but described as a misnomer handing over school to old students’ association, who were not original owners.
Pointing to the fact that the government took over schools from the missionaries so as to implement free education, the group questioned the capability of the GCIOBA to provide true free education.
A situation it described as shaving one’s head behind him, the JAF chided the signing of the MoU without the involvement of the PTA of the school.
While acknowledging that the government faced dwindling resources to provide free and qualitative education, the JAF said it was uncharitable to give public property to some group of individuals.
The JAF also faulted the GCIOBA on its claim to have expended N2billion on infrastructure in the school.
Among members of the PTA of the school that echoed the JAF’s call were Adeniyi Adeniji, Owosibo Olusegun, Adebamiji Olatunde while community representatives present were Babalola S.V and Mudasiru Raji.
Parts of the JAF address read, “Questions that ensue from this agreement are: what kind of free education are they interested in? How would those who will constitute the governing board of the school not be in the know of the arrangement from its inception? Where presently in GCI can N2billion infrastructures be found?
“To the first question, what kind of free education are they interested in? If it is the one put forward by the Seyi Makinde led administration, it will be worth nothing because profit-oriented groups would not have been interested if it is truly a free education in the first instance. As we speak presently in Oyo State, there is no substantial funding for the Secondary school educational sub-sector in terms of funds made available for the day to day running of the schools.
“Fees that were charged by school administrators to make schools run have been stopped without a replacement from the government. So if it is that kind of free education, the school will be worse for it. It is merely a slogan and paying lip service to what is laudable without any commitment to doing it.
“To the second question, how would those who will constitute members of the governing board of the school not be in the know of the arrangement from its inception? This agreement realizes that the PTA is an important aspect of school administration in Nigeria.
“If there is nothing to be hidden, why has the PTA not been carried along from the inception of the agreement? This is like shaving one’s head behind him. Interestingly, some members of the PTA, such as parents and teachers belong to the old boys’ association and they are asking when was the decision of the association taken to take over the school from the state government?
“The third question is: where in GCI presently can N2billion infrastructures be found? The N2billion claim that was said to have been used to develop infrastructures is an over blotted figure.
“This group of people are only appropriating what they have not done to themselves. What about individuals and groups that have contributed to developing the school without wanting to own it? To value the school presently in the range of 2 billion naira will be including the land that was donated by the communities to the government and the staff quarters that was built by the government.
“This group of people only wants to take over what belongs to the people of Oyo State and appropriate it to be their own. There is nothing charitable about this takeover.
“It is a calculated attempt to give public property to some individuals who see themselves as friends and associates of the government of the day.
“This whole exercise is nothing but privatisation agenda and commercialization of Education.
“Handing over schools to old students’ association is a misnomer. How does one hand over what does not belong to someone to him or her?
“This is unknown to the history of education, especially in the southwestern part of this country and it is alien, particularly to Oyo State.”
“If the old boys’ association is so interested in school ownership and administration, the laws of Nigeria allow them as a body to establish their own schools and run them the way they like. GCI belongs to the people of Oyo state and it should remain as such.
“The Seyi Makinde led administration should make real his promises: to fight corruption, obedience to rule of law and allow social justice for the benefit of the greatest number of people who live in Oyo State. To hand over this school will negate any effort he has made so far in the state.
We insist that the handing over is a surreptitious way of giving public institutions to private individuals which is a neoliberalist agenda. The JAF hereby join well-meaning citizens of Nigeria to condemn this decision in all ramifications and call for a reversal immediately.”
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