The parents and teachers of students at the Federal Government Colleges have called on the new Minister of Education, Professor Tahir Mamman, to bring to bear his wealth of experience to turn things around for better in unity colleges nationwide.
They said the system needs to be santised to substantially raise the standards of those schools and their products.
They raised these concerns under the aegis of the Parent-Teacher Association (PTA) Chairmen Forum of South West Unity Schools at their meeting held recently.
In a statement signed and made available to newsmen by both the chairman/zonal coordinator and zonal secretary, Professor Lukuman Jimoda and Dr Emmanuel Onyenuche, respectively, the forum said the unity colleges remain national treasures that have contributed to the much desired national unity and development.
They said the minister and his team must take a holistic view to approach the issues of unity colleges, stressing that many things have to be done to lift them to greater heights.
They listed deplorable state of infrastructures, dearth of teachers, water and power supply, hike in school fees, poor funding, defective entrance examination system, as salient areas the minister would need to pay special attention to for positive change.
They noted that most of these challenges have always in no small measure put extra financial burdens on them as parents in their bid to fill these gaps for the government.
The forum also asked the minister to consider the teachers and other adhoc staff under the payroll of PTA in various unity colleges, and many of whom have worked for a decade to convert them to full-time staff under the government payroll.
They said doing so will not only make them earn commensurable salaries but to also enjoy other benefits like their counterparts employed by the government, adding that it will also boost their morale and consequently further raise the standard of education in those schools and in the country by extension.
They also urged the minister to reconsider the proposed hike in various levies being paid by students, arguing that their implementation would likely force many students out of school which would be inimical to the country’s development.
The forum, however, promised to continue to lend their support to the growth and development of unity schools.
Eighteen out of a total of 110 federal government colleges are in the Southwest geopolitical zone.
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