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FG bans PTA levies in unity schools 

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In a move it said is to alleviate the sufferings of parents and students, the Federal Government has stopped the collection of development levies by the Parents-Teachers Association (PTA) in Unity Colleges across the country.

The decision is contained in a statement issued by the Deputy Director (Press and Public Relations) in the Ministry of Education, Ben Bem Goong.

The statement further said the ban was “with immediate effect”, adding that PTAs would no longer be allowed to initiate development projects in any of the schools without the express or written permission of the Federal Ministry of Education.

The Minister of Educatiin, Malam Adamu Adamu, was quoted in the statement as explaining that government made the decision because it was trying to arrest the shocking trend where development levies imposed on parents by PTAs were becoming higher than the school fees charged by the government which established the schools.

The minister, in the statement, cited the examples of PTA collections which had become higher than school fees charged by government, at Kings College, Lagos and the Federal Science and Technical College, Yaba in Lagos where the fees charged by the government for JSS1 pupils in the first term was N69, 400.00, while the PTA collections stood at N70,000.00 and N74,000 respectively per child.

The statement reads in part: “This brings the total amount paid by parents in these two schools to N139,400 and N143,400 respectively. With the reduction on development levies and ban on charges for new projects as well as the pegging of the development levy to a maximum of N5,000, parents of JSS1 pupils in these two schools will now pay N88,000.

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“While acknowledging the complementary roles played by parents and the support provided by the PTA to the colleges, the education minister said he would not allow the PTAs to constitute themselves into a government within a government at the level of the Unity Schools and at the expense of parents.”

Adamu also said government was concerned over the activities of the PTAs, which has already formed themselves into national associations, instead of being  limited to the schools attended by their children.

The minister further said the existence of an umbrella body over the PTA as “unnecessary, exploitative and unacceptable.”

On the realignment of charges payable to schools and PTAs, the minister said there had been no increase in school fees.

Adamu said: “The realigned fees now stand at N83,000 across all Unity Colleges in the country for new intakes, and a recommended maximum of N5,000 PTA levy, while old students will pay less.

“This is intended to transfer payments from parents directly to the colleges rather than routing them through the PTA thereby reducing the increasing over-dependence on PTA and the attendant interference in the management of the colleges. The exorbitant PTA charges have made the quest to become PTA Chairmen a do-or-die affair in almost all Unity Colleges.”

By Timothy Enietan-Matthews

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