A former World Court judge, Chief Bola Ajibola, and the President, National Association of Proprietors of Private Schools in Ogun State, Dr. Abayomi Jiboku, have called on the federal and state governments to give incentives to private school owners.
Owners of such schools, the duo said, needed incentives like free land and incentives, especially for new entrants among them.
They made the call in Abeokuta, Ogun State at the association’s annual day celebration titled “The role of education in tackling health and security hazards in society.”
Ajibola and Jiboku spoke on the heels of a paper delivered by a lecturer at the Tai Solarin University of Education, Ijagun, Ijebu Ode, Dr. Adefunke Ekine, on the occasion.
Ekine had pointed out that the South African government supported private school owners by giving them free land, among other incentives.
Ajibola, who agreed with Ekine, said he supported the call for the government to subsidise private education in the country.
He said, “I support the guest speaker that the government should subsidise education as far as private schools are concerned. If that is what the media can report here, I am okay with it.”
Jiboku noted particularly that the private sector deserved government’s attention, especially as they contributed to training the citizens.
He said, “Just as our guest speaker said, governments in other countries subsidise education. Without education, the citizens won’t be able to cope socially and economically. So we need the government to support us.
“There is a seminar coming up soon in the state, teachers in the public schools are paying nothing but those from the private schools are expected to pay N4, 000 each.
“Are they saying that the parents of those pupils in private schools don’t pay tax to the state, like the fathers of those in the public schools? They also took part in voting in the election that brought this government to power.”
Elsewhere in Lagos during the celebration, the state NAPPS President, Mr. Yomi Otubela, urged communities to report suspicious movements around their respective schools.
According to him, only a concerted effort can help stem the tide of terrorism targeted at schools, especially in the northern part of the country.
Otubela said, “Members of the communities are particularly encouraged to report any suspicious movement within their environment to the appropriate authority in charge of security; it is only when we have concerted efforts in tackling security challenge that we will be able to overcome it in the country.”
An education consultant, Mr. Nelson Ayodele, who was the guest speaker in Lagos, urged members of the association to contribute to changing the face of education in the country.
Referring to a 2011 study, the Education Sector Support in Nigeria, Ayodele noted that 60 per cent of children in Lagos were in private schools.
Ayodele observed, “Millions of parents trust you with their children than they trust the state government, millions of parents have more confidence in the quality of education that you deliver that what happens in state schools.’’
He, therefore, challenged the school owners to increase the quality of the service delivery in their schools.
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