Resumption: Mass Withdrawal Hits Private Schools

takes to do so.

“It is difficult for us to checkmate them. When we try to make sure they join the associa on and do what is necessary, they will tell us that joining an associa on is not compulsory by the Cons tu on of the country.

“Many of the people star ng private schools are not qualified. Some of them did not even know anything. There are lots of schools with many students and the owners who are managing the schools cannot speak good English. We have not been given the opportunity to control the establishment of private schools in the country.” between private and public schools.

Olatoke said there are qualified teachers in the public schools to take care of the students moving from private schools.

“The parents are now comparing and they are seeing that there is no difference. There are qualified teachers that can handle their children in public schools. So, what is the need to go and pay exorbitant amounts in private school?

“They are coming in a good me, the government is ready to improve the standard of educaon in Osun State”, he stated.

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Ekwubiri, in an exclusive interview with OSUN DEFENDER yesterday, noted that his school was also affected by the mass withdrawal of children by the parents, saying the economy situa on of the country was having effect on the educa on system.

He said: “Everybody knows that the condion in the country is extremely difficult. We are facing a hard economy. Because of that, parents have decided to go to schools where their children will not pay.

“The parents are now taking their children from our schools to the public schools because of the economic crunch.

“Even in my school, I’m facing the same scenario. Parents are complaining that they cannot con nue to pay the private school fees again because of the economy of the country.”

Ekwubiri lamented the decay in the educaon sector of the state, saying that many private schools no longer have SS II and SS III students.

According to him, parents prefer to send their children to coaching centres where they will register them for external examina ons and buy results for them, instead of allowing them to complete their secondary school educa on.

He said: “Like I told the Deputy Governor during the last educa on summit, the state government is the problem of educa on in Osun State. There are things that the government is encouraging and they are affec ng the educa on system of the state.

“If you go to many schools, you will not see SS3 students again. Their parents have enrolled them in lessons because they believe they only have to pay a small amount there compared to school and they will register them at centres where they will buy results for them.

“That is another level of poverty in the country. Students no longer have tes monials. Unlike our me when we were given tes monials, students nowadays only have cerficates.”

Speaking on why private schools are s ll coming up despite the situa on, Ekwubiri said some of the people establishing private schools nowadays are doing so because they had no alterna ve ways of ends meet, adding that most of them lacked the qualifica ons to operate a school.

He noted that some of the owners have the backing of those in government, thereby making it difficult to checkmate them.

According to him, “Even though parents are taking their children to the public schools, new private schools are s ll coming up every day and you wonder why are new private schools being established when the exis ng ones are already losing their students.

“The reason is that most of the owners of the new private schools do not have any other work to do. Since the government didn’t pro- vide jobs, the best thing they could think of is to start school even when they don’t have what it

The state Chairman of Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT), Comrade Muritala Olatoke, while speaking with OSUN DEFENDER yesterday said parents have come to realize that there is now difference

The NUT chairman, however appealed to Governor Ademola Adeleke to help teachers in the state in terms of pallia ve and remuneraon.

He stated: “My plea to the government is to remunerate the teachers accordingly. We know the standard of living to-

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