Out-of- school children, a menace that must be addressed-Ondo Assembly

The Ondo State House of Assembly says that out of school children is a menace that must be addressed in reducing various  forms of social vices  in the state. 

The House Committee on Education, Science and Technology stated this  during its familiarization visit to the state Ministry of Education,  Teaching Service Commission ( TESCOM), Board of Adult, Technical and Vocational Education, State Library Board, State Scholarship Board, State Universal Basic Education Board( SUBEB) and State Information Technology Agency( SITA). 

The committee led by its Chairman, Hon. Kolawole Ologbede, said that all children in the state must have at least basic education, saying that would reduce level of illiteracy in the state.

Ologede tasked the state Ministry of Education on making government-owned schools attractive to learners, asking the ministry and other stakeholders  to get school children engaged in extra-curricula activities so that social vices to take their focus away from criminally-induced activities.

He enjoined the ministry to ban the use of mobile phone by students in the public schools.

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According to him, the  House of Assembly is not relenting in ensuring that standard of education is uplifted in the state.

At the TESCOM Office, the committee chairman said that stakeholders must take education serious if Nigeria would grow as a nation, promising that the House of Assembly would give its best legislative support.

Speaking at the Ondo State Board of Adult, Technical and Vocational Education, Ologede said that the board was important to the state government’s efforts  to provide employment opportunities for teeming youths through vocational means. 

He asked the board  to collaborate closely with the assembly in achieving its purpose of creation, assuring that the board’s enumerated challenges would be addressed. 

The committee chairman also said that the House of Assembly would attend to challenges being faced by the state Scholarship Board considering  its relief roles of alleviating financial burden that students of the state origin in various tertiary institutions in the country faced.

Similarly, Ologede assured the State Information and Technology Agency ( SITA) said that the House of Assembly would do its best to contribute immensely to development of technology in the state, asking the agency to strengthen all digital villages across the state. 

At the State Library Board, the committee chairman stated that the committee would communicate with appropriate authorities in making the state library IJN Akure attractive and conducive for study.

Earlier, the Permanent Secretary of the state Ministry of Education, Mrs Folasade  Adegoke, said that despite some challenges being faced by public schools in the state, their students still performed creditably in external examinations and national competitions.

Adegoke explained that the state was fair when compared to other states on out-of-school children menace, adding that the ministry was collaborating with individuals and corporate organizations in making public schools attractive. 

Also, the Permanent Secretary of the TESCOM, Mrs Tolu Adeyemi, said that recruitment of teachers and non teaching staff was overdue in keeping standard of education high in the state. 

Adeyemi added that there was need to put in place perimeter fence around all secondary schools in the state in keeping miscreants away from the schools, asking the state government to extend its renovation projects to secondary schools across the state. 

She added that the state government was planning to send bill for creation of the Ondo State Senior Education Board to the House of Aseembly, pleading that the bill should be given accelerated hearing and passage for development of public secondary schools.

In her remarks, Mrs Funke Adelayi, the Administrative Officer of the State  Board of Adult, Technical and Vocational Education, asked the committee to increase the budgetary allocations to the agency so that the agency could deliver in line with the state government’s agenda.

The Director of the State Library Board, Mr Abiodun Bagbe, asked for timely access to budgetary allocation to the board, adding that the board needed to upgrade its services to electronic means.

Other members of the committee are: Hon. Suleiman Murtala, the Vice Chairman of the Committee; Hon. Felix Afe, Hon. Nelson Akinsuroju and Hon. Johnson Oguntodu