Ogun govt committed to free education programme — Speaker

Mr Olakunle Oluomo, the Speaker of Ogun House of Assembly, says the current administration in the state is committed to its free and qualitative education programme in public primary and secondary schools.

Reacting on Tuesday at plenary to an allegation that some public schools were collecting levies from pupils, Oluomo (APC—Ifo 1) said that education at the basic and post-primary levels remained free.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the Deputy Speaker, Mr Oludare Kadiri, had during plenary claimed that some parents of pupils in his constituency had alleged that some schools were demanding money.

The speaker, however, clarified that even though the free education programme subsisted, that had not precluded the Parents -Teacher Association (PTA) of each school from initiating projects to be executed.

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He said that whatever levies charged by the PTA, which were subject to approval by the State Ministry of Education, Science and Technology, should not be misconstrued as tuition fee or school fees.

According to him, no school principal or official should on account of such fee, send children away from attending classes as the state was committed to ensuring free education at the primary and secondary levels.

Kadiri (APC – Ijebu North II) later laid two petitions before the assembly on behalf of Ifelodun Youth Vanguards consisting of communities in Oru- Awa- Ilaporu and another from a former lawmaker, Hon. Ismail Sansa.

In another development, the speaker had extended invitation to stakeholders in the sports and allied sectors for a public hearing on two bills.

They are the State Sports Trust Funds and State Sports Commission Bills.

Oluomo said that the hearing was meant to harness inputs and contributions of all relevant stakeholders with a view to having an all-encompassing law to regulate and develop sporting activities in the state. (NAN)