Kogi State Government has vowed to sanction any principal and head teacher of public primary and secondary schools who sabotage its free education policy.
The state’s Commissioner for Education, Mr Wemi Jones, gave the warning while speaking with newsmen.
He emphasised that public schools in the state have remained tuition-free free and as such, any principal or head teacher who smuggles fees into the system does so at his or her perils.
The commissioner warned that any erring officials will be severely punished, and advised parents and students to report erring officials to the Authority.
He stressed that the government had prioritised education and was giving all the needed attention to the functional growth of the education subsector.
Jones maintained that since the assumption of office of the immediate past and present administrations, education has been on the front burner of its thematic areas of concentration.
He disclosed that the administration had successfully enacted education law which exempted students and pupils from payment for both internal and external examinations.
This, he said included WAEC, NECO, NABTEB, JAMB, BECE, and other sundry charges, while advising parents and students to report any infraction from their schools.
“No student is allowed to pay fees in any guise. Both internal examinations and public examinations, such as Waec, Neco, Nabteb, Jamb, and BECE are free.
“I am calling on parents and students to report any erring principals, and we are resolute to punish them accordingly,” he said.
He added that in line with the philosophy of state government to guarantee qualitative education had approved over 30 per cent of budgetary allocation to the sector far above the UNESCO-recommended 26 per cent.
According to him, the education trajectory of these administrations had surpassed previous governments before 2016, the investment has restored confidence to the public schools in the state.
He said, that for proper planning, the free fees are targeted at public schools for now, however, private schools’ consideration would be affected in the future.
Jones advised students to justify the huge investment outlay on them by taking their studies seriously, even as extracurricular activities could be an added advantage.
He used the occasion to mourn with the two students who lost their lives due to the recent abduction of students of Confluence University of Science and Technology Osara.
The commissioner used the occasion to mourn the death of two students of Confluence University of Science and Technology (CUSTECH), Osara, who were among the 25 students abducted from the school by bandits.
