Send your child to school or go to jail, Kaduna govt tells parents

Reinstating the child’s right to free, compulsory and universal basic education, the Kaduna state government, on Friday, advised parents to send their children to school or face prosecution in accordance with extant laws

This was made known by the permanent secretary, ministry of education, Mrs Phoebe Yayi, who gave the advice in Kaduna during an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria.

She said in meeting the government’s duty to provide such education, the government of Kaduna state has declared free education to every child from primary to secondary school in the state.

The permanent secretary explained that the move was part of measures to ensure that every resident of the state was literate, and have quality life.

“Therefore, parents have no excuse not to send their children to school, as the government has taken off all financial burden from parents.

“You should be aware that the Child Welfare and Protection Law, 2018, section 18 (6), stipulates that any parent or guardian who fails to send his or her child to school commits an offence.

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“It added that a parent is liable on a first conviction to be reprimanded and ordered to undertake community service and on second conviction risk fine or imprisonment or both.

“As such, sending your children to school is no longer a choice, but compulsory and failure to do so is a criminal offence with a possible jail term.

The permanent secretary added that even adults were given a second chance to acquire education in the spirit of “not living anyone behind.”

Giving the warning, she said, ‘on no account should any parent deny his or her child the right to education, which would unlock the child’s full potential for a better future.’

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