Private schools’ owners protest multiple levies in Ogun

Abeokuta

Private schools’ owners in Ogun State on Wednesday protested against alleged multiple levies and charges by the state government.

Scores of the private schools’ owners, who gathered under the aegis of the National Association of Proprietors of Private Schools, Ogun State chapter, stormed the Nigeria Union of Journalists’ secretariat, Oke Ilewo, Abeokuta, protesting what they described as 150 per cent increase in the fee charged for the First School Leaving Certificate Examination.

They said the fee had been increased from N500 to N2,000.

 The protesters displayed placards with inscriptions such as, “Don’t kill private schools with multiple levies, dues and charges,” “The economic downturn affects us and the parents too,” “Do not destroy our educational system by destroying private schools,” “Do not kill private schools with levies,” among others.

 The President of the group, Alhaji Rilwan Hassan, said the government had also increased the fee for the Basic Education Certificate Examination from N2,500 to N5,000.

He explained that there was a disparity between the fees and charges payable by public and private schools to the state government for those two examinations.

He argued that the discrimination was affecting the education system in the state.

Hassan said the association had written many letters to relevant authorities, including the Alake of Egbaland, Oba Adedotun Gbadebo, to intervene in the situation, but there was no response.

He said, “We want the government to reverse its decision on fees for BECE, FSLC, signage, tenement rate, renewal fee and multiple taxes.

“We are assisting the government to employ workers in our schools and a lot of us are on loans. It is social service we are rendering.”

Hassan said pupils from private schools in the state had been doing well in the West African Secondary School Certificate Examination, adding that 55 private secondary schools in the state were among the best schools in 2015.

He said, “We are among the best 1,000 schools in WASSCE last year. We have 55 private schools from Ogun State among the top 1,000.”

On the issue of mushroom private schools in the state, he said the association had done a documentary on them, which it had submitted to the commissioner for education, for necessary action, adding that nothing had been done about it.

The Ogun State Commissioner for Education, Modupe Mujota, said the increments were necessary given current economic realities in the country.

Mujota said the increments were not a routine exercise, adding that there had been no increment in the last four years.

She said, “The intention of the government is not to kill private schools. The decision is in line with the school fees being charged by the schools.”