The time was 7:20am on Tuesday. A schoolgirl living in my neighbourhood curtsied in deference to me while mouthing a “good morning ma,” while she briskly walked pass me on her way to school. Surprisingly, about an hour later, on my way out, I sighted same girl in mufti in front of her mum’s shop. Out of curiosity I beckoned on her and demanded to know why she was home during school hours. The junior student of Government Day Secondary School, Adewole, Ilorin, Kwara State, told me that she was sent out of school for non payment of fees for the term in session. My mind immediately flashed back to the story of Success Adegor, a pupil of Okotie-Eboh Primary School 1, Sapele Local Government of Delta State, who was sent away from school because of her parents’ inability to pay her school fees. The video of the girl while she was ranting over the development, went viral last week. Mother luck, however, shone on Success as she became beneficiary of philanthropic gestures from some well meaning Nigerians who watched the video. She was offered voluntary scholarship funds to University level.
However, there are hundreds of pupils with similar plight, but who were not as fortunate as the Adegor girl. Many children have had their morales for learning dampened as a result of ”punishments’ employed by school managements for non payment of school fees. Success had said in pidgin, “I never pay, no be say I no go pay o, dem go dey pursue person instead of may dem flog person.” The girl stressed her preference for being flogged and allowed to stay in school to learn than being sent home. That was why I was saddened that students of the aforementioned Ilorin school were sent home over their parents’ inability to pay a paltry sum of N1,500. It is instructive to note that the said sum is the compulsory Parents Teachers’ Association (PTA) levy, as education is free for all children in the state from the basic up to the secondary school level. Though the state government did not determine the PTA levy, it has the responsibility of regulating the payment in a way that will be very affordable for parents. The levy was an agreement between the PTA, Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT) and All Nigeria Conference of Principals of Secondary Schools (ANCOPSS), as a way of supporting respective schools.
Understandably, the major problem that compounds schools’ financial inadequacy is irregular payment of school fees and PTA levy; and inadequate financial support of the PTA. It is believed that money generated through this medium would help complement governments’ effort in the provision of fund for schools. Even at that, pupils should not be denied the opportunity of classroom learning because like Adegor, it is believed that these children should not be sent home since they would eventually pay. What they have lost in terms of learning while away from school, they may never gain. How does the school make up for the time they were not in class?
It is quite unfortunate that innocent children are made to suffer when their parents fail in their obligation towards their education. It is double trouble for the affected pupils. This puts them at disadvantage. There is the danger of some of these children sent home, straying to other places and as such being lured into social vices. There is also security concern as anything could happen to these children who are expected to be in the care of the school at such time. Sending children home for fees while their mates are in school could also affect them psychologically. There is no doubt that the affected children with feel embarrassed and this could affect their psyche if their mates make fun of them. That must have been the reason Success appeared really pained while expressing herself in the video. For these reasons, it is pertinent for school managements to fashion better ways of retrieving such debts other than flogging, corporal punishment or sending the ‘debtors’ home. The managements could take cue from private schools where results are seized until parents pay tuition debt. This measure is considered more effective and save the affected children much trouble; with that it is the parents that bear the brunt because without report cards they won’t be able to assess their children’s performance. The schools can also allow parents to pay in installments to lessen their financial burden.
It is noteworthy that most parents are financially incapacitated because of the economic situation in the country. Though, that is not a tenable excuse for them to derelict their obligation towards their children’s academic learning given the importance of education.
Nevertheless, it is important for parents to get their priorities right. They should understand that education is the best legacy they can bequeath on their children.
It also behooves the state government to do more in the area of provision of instructional materials and infrastructure to improve teaching and learning in public schools.
