The Principal of Ebonyi State University Secondary School,
Mr Fidelis Ozibo and other management staff has been arrested over alleged insubordination and Mismanagement.
The Commissioner for Education, Primary and Secondary, Dr Donatus Ilang, ordered the arrest of the management staff during a visit to the school, Friday.
Dr Ilang said, their arrest was because of their refusal to honour the invitation he extended to them to come and give report on an alleged rape incident of a teenage girl in the School.
The Commissioner expressed dismay Over the lack of maintenance of facilities in the School despite the alleged charges that they are collecting from Students.He further directed that all the money which the school collected from parents for multiple items which is not seen at anywhere in the school, be refunded to the parents immediately.
The Commissioner lamented that even ordinary soap could not be seen in the school toilet or classrooms.
"It was because that there was no functional toilets, that was why the young girl went to deficate in the bush around the school and she was raped " Ilang alleged.
"Of a truth, there is need for us to adjust, that is why sometimes, we leave our offices to know what is obtainable in some schools.
For the EBSU Secondary school, the step they took to restore the health of the girl who was raped was highly commendable but in the area of cleanliness of the school, is nothing to write home about. It is just like a dump site".
It was also discovered that many students were not on school uniforms which The students said they have paid for, over a term now but they have not been given the uniform.
"I ordered for the arrest of the principal and other management staff because I called for a meeting so that he can brief the Ministry about the incidents surrounding the rape, he ignored the meeting even when he was officially invited ". Ilang said.
In his reaction, the Principal of EBSU Secondary school, Mr Emmanuel Ozibo said said his absence in the meeting called by the Commissioner for Education was deliberate as it was the Vice Chancellor of Ebonyi State University, Professor Michael Awoke that instructed him not to obey such invitation from the commissioner even when it is a duty of the Commissioner to supervise all Primary and Secondary Schools in Ebonyi State.
Mr Ozibo continue to defend all the faults and lapses pointed out by the commissioner even when it was so glaring that some of the facilities in the school are dilapidated including some classrooms, Laboratory, Computer laboratory among others.
In his reaction the Vice Chancellor, Professor Michael Awoke expressed anger on telephone conversations with Journalists, that the commissioner for education lacks the power to supervise the school whether Nursery, Primary or Secondary Schools within the institutions, and called for their release.
Meanwhile, Some of the parents who pleaded anonymity urged Ebonyi State Government to come to and rescue the school as a lot of corruption is allegedly going on, in the School.
They thanked Commission for Education, Dr Ilang who has come to revive education in the State at large.
It was gathered that the rapist is under police custody, ready to be charged to court of law.
Similarly, the Commissioner also ordered for the closure of the American British Home Academy which the ministry had earlier closed due to lack of structure in the school, but the management went ahead and forcefully reopened it.
"There is no structure in American British Home Academy that was good to be called school, all I saw there was shanties". He said.
He however, directed the police to charge those arrested to court.
Post a Comment