Anita Ogona
SUB-STANDARD,MUSHROOM SCHOOLS,A MUDSLINGING AND DEFAMATORY TENDENCY TO ROB -OFF THE PRIVATE SCHOOLS OF THEIR MERIT AND RUBBISH THEIR LAUDABLE EFFORTs
We have watched over the years, our umpires in this profession, the Ministry of Education and others go a dent on our image, our effort to create job opportunities taking crops of graduates off the streets on employ and providing meals and others to numerous homes via salaries paid to them and while at the same time nurturing and grooming the Nigerian child.
We have watched and we have so done in utter dismay, total discouragement and cerebral impunity and we shed tears in tanks because we know that as for being mushroom whatever that qualifier means to the users, we ain’t, rather someone somewhere always tie down our legs with ropes of guilt of being substandard and begin to cast pebbles of fear- inducing acids and pollutants to corrode and pollute our meritorious involvement and keep us on a perpetual oh yes page to anything they call policies.
Let me start by saying, the trending video clip of a shockingly dilapidated school in Amandim Olo is a government school not a private school.
Also the school in Ekpawfu that their students were moved to Akpugo by the PPSMB chairman for not have had teachers attend and teach in three or more weeks of resumption was not a private school.
A cursory look at it would give you all needed to write an excellent essay on how substandard a substandard school can be since the Enugu MoE has pegged its criteria to judge a school on facility or structure rather than quality of education given, devotedness and commitment on the parts of the teachers.
What is the moral justification of a person that sits over the school in the video talked about and numerous others yawning and yearning for repairs to call the private schools substandard ? Admittedly,there are colleagues that are next to nothing in their expected duties but not like what we see overboard and if given the chance,we know them and know how to get them right better than any other person.
I interact with colleagues from other states and obviously the treatment elsewhere is better.
Some states have department of private schools in the ministries manned by colleagues and through which advisories and decisions that of favour to the private schools are passed across.
Those they call our stakeholders here say they don’t initiate,suggest or advise. All they do in stakeholders meeting is sit,listen,get the information and go and act on them .
Let’s face the fact and quit the crack,if those calling us quacks wanna send their kids to school what comes up their minds– private schools.
Most of those in that MoE and Enugu government pass through that same quack schools I beg your pardon to become what they are today.
If you really care enough to help that your and your children’s alma mater,it is not in shutting them down but in giving them subventives, incentives, encouragements and boosts to stand firmly and stand better. This is how a sane society thinks !
Giving a direct shut down or indirect help shut yourself down policy of payment of 2.2 million naira tax to stand is braintoxicating I beg your pardon.
I spoke with a school owner colleague from Ikorodu Lagos this morning who told me that through their association ,NAPPS, they don’t pay more than 10,000 naira to the government together with other minor expenses like fumigation,signboard which at most won’t exceed 25k to 30k in total.
That is Ekooo, Lagos the commercial nerve centre of Nigeria and this is our case in Enugu where businesses struggle to survive due to lack of money.
This is our storrrrrrryyyy…..
Here are pills for you to give a deal.
For years the adjectivals continue improving from quack, mushroom, illegal, substandard to unlicensed schools today but I’m gonna shock the novice on what and how it goes.
The ministry pegged its base of deciding what a substandard school is by
(1) Operating without a licence
(2) Not having an intimidating edifice as the school building
(3) Not having the state of the art ICT gadgets
(4) Not having huge money to pay tax
(5) Not having qualified, proficient and experienced teachers .
While one can boldly defend the motion that holds that 3 and 5 among others are determinants of a standard school,I need a help from someone who can tell me how 1, 2 and 4 count especially 4.
Remember, with the tax with which the public schools run and which we are part of the payers,the government could not fix many rots in their public schools talk more of an “ikeotuonye” struggling to proffer succour to the ever hungry labour market in terms of job creation.
If I don’t have a school today,If colleagues don’t ,we shall all be on the lookout for what comes from the government in terms of job and palliatives to help soothe the ever threatening economic anomaly. Some from other angles won’t only be liabilities but nuisance facing and greeting the government and the hoippolloi .
That most schools don’t have licence today does not mean they are not doing exceedingly well academically . You find many good schools on the list of unlicensed as well as the licensed .
It’s ironical to note that most of those quack in quote schools do better than some licensed schools.
Those schools are actually doing well with regards to what it means to run a school but are held bound by the rigorous process of approval which actually is not tested on ground of dearth of quality of lessons but monetary .
Approval process especially inspection and others are always a time to make the visitors smile to the bank and smile in the tommy.
Each visit of inspection takes a huge sum out of one’s pocket for food and drinks as well as parcel of envelope of money each inspector gets as recommended and you never can tell how many visits that would be made before you secure your provisional licence of approval .
Anytime they visit ,there will always be something to be discovered that you will be asked to work on for a future visit of more money and food and drinks .
On this note,I ask ,what has coming to inspect the facility you have on ground got to do with food and drinks provision as well as money to take home?
Why several visits before approval?
This is where most school owners are shot in their legs of getting licensed and are left to the mercy of the MoE.
Study shows that most experienced and result- producing proprietors don’t charge much.
They don’t do so because they know that education being social service should be made affordable and with a consideration that there are many indigents to help cross the bridge.
Charging low leaves them incapacitated to raise funds to buy approval forms,pay three years tax, fix recommended items including the school before inviting them over and .not to forget their envelopes and food and drinks to merry home with.
Yes, these schools and many others out there that are yet to be licensed are working hard, improving on what they have on ground to meet fully and achieve approval like most schools you see as big schools out there.
Matter of fact, 85 or more percent of schools known today started as unlicensed schools and worked tirelessly till they arrived.
Today, the private education stakeholders are getting better with this ally in coalition birthed out of our displeasure with the commissioner’s address to us on the 24th of September, 2024 in his office.
Since that day till Saturday the 27th same Month when the coalition unanimously named me as their chairman,we have worked together as one and achieved together as one . Both APSON,PAPS and NAPPS .
We have dignitaries from all the associations including the ex state chairman of NAPPS.
Altogether, the two factional leaders of NAPPS pretend not to be part of the ally even when they were there on that 24th to see what happened and joined us in the gathering downstairs only to disperse later for whatever selfish interest they might have,it is not deniable that we are together now and can not only help the government but guide them on how best we can help make private sector better.
The two factional leaders of one association are on their own and may not represent the voice of a coalition that holds their members, that of APSON and PAPS which form the trio of private school stakeholders front in Enugu.
Another fallacious sell cheap here is the idea of calling some associations an association of illegal school. These are cheap propaganda sold over to nail easy! It never did occur to me that certain associations are started for illegal schools .Not to my best of knowledge
All the three associations mentioned above have a good deal of share of approved,in the process and yet to be approved schools. Need I to tell you the association that has more unlicensed and the ones that has less. schools than others ? That would be a story for another day.
The only challenge we have at the moment are the two factions of one association that go about claiming they represent us differently and speaking the voice of thousands .
That to me would be like two chasing two thousand!
Their members are with us in the coalition including some of their excos past and present and they have all open arms of us to receive them whenever ,to work jointly to put Enugu private education sector and Enugu state government on the world map.
It’s always better achieved when we together achieve.
Today and as usual,we have a front through which the state government can reach us and reach wider and we are ready to co-operate but not in kill them out policies and terrible slanders and libels aimed at intimidating and subduing .
We are law abiding and part of the society builders but we always cry when we are hit.
That is the pressure in the bubble that makes us a pressure group .
Hon. Amb.
E.A.GRAHAMS
@encyklopolitik-360⁰SE
is the pioneer Enugu state chapter chairman, Association of Private School Owners of Nigeria(APSON)
And most recently the coalition chairman of all private schools association in Enugu State
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