Bukola Olatunji
11 December 2007
interview
Lagos — The Benue State Commissioner for Education, Dr. Eugene Aliegba was one of the Nigerian delegates to the 34 th Session of the General Conference of UNESCO, held in Paris, recently; where he shared his government's efforts at removing the state from the examination malpractice chart, among other issues, with Bukola Olatunji and other Nigerian journalists at the conference
A state claims to be the fountain of knowledge. Another says it has the highest number of tertiary institutions in the country. What has Benue State to offer as far as education is concerned?
Apart from the civil service, education is the major industry in Benue State . Even though it is an agricultural state, this is operating at a very minimal level. There are no industries there, so there is competition for education. People go to school so that they can have a good means of livelihood. As the commissioner, I am proud to say that His Excellency, the Governor has given me the opportunity and wide latitude to revive education in the state.
So what are you doing with this opportunity?
So many things. We have put in a lot of reforms at the primary and secondary school levels. His Excellency has accessed some money from the Universal Basic Education Commission and we are building some classrooms at the primary school level and stocking schools with books and other materials at the secondary level. We are also putting quality assurance in place. The news coming out of Benue State was not good to talk about and we are trying to reverse that. At the higher level, we have sent a visitation panel to the Benue State University , which has submitted its report. This is to try and revive higher or tertiary education. These are the things that we have done. His Excellency sent me to this conference to be able to apprise myself with the international standards in education and I am proud to say I have acquired a lot of knowledge that would help with what we have started at home.
What bad news are you trying to reverse?
The reports from WAEC and NECO ranked Benue State second on the examination malpractice chart. This is something we can't contest because that is what the reports say. But I have often told the press that it is so because Benue people are honest about the problem they have and perhaps because the problem has not been well addressed. I have met with WAEC and NECO officials. We have worked out a programme to solve this problem. The Ministry of Education, under my leadership is going to be personally involved with the Benue State police command in the next examinations, beginning with JAMB, then WAEC and NECO. We will be physically there at the venues. We have also set up an Exam Ethics Committee, which is going to be chaired by a very seasoned retired Educationist and include some clergymen to look at the ethical issues in examination malpractice so that the problem can be properly addressed. Blames (can then) apportioned where they should be and punishment for those who are responsible
Can we have the chairman's name?
No. The process is still on, but we have identified people. We are also setting up an Exam Excellence Awards Committee, which will be in charge of putting forward, annually, students who have performed well in national examinations so that the state can recognise and reward them appropriately, so that the youths will aspire for excellence. These are incentives geared towards slowing down the rate of examination malpractice. I think poor monitoring is also responsible for it and we are going to step up our monitoring. We are also overhauling the Inspectorate Unit of the state Ministry of Education.
It has been argued that people cheat in examinations, mainly because they are not adequately prepared for them. Do have any programme in place to ensure that students receive good quality education in the first place, to check examination malpractice?
When I came in as Commissioner of Education, we found about examination malpractice was that it was prevalent among external students, those who had finished school, but were unable to make their WAEC and/or NECO. They come in and are desperate. They employ all kinds of means and also register in all kinds of schools and are able to subvert the system. So, the first decision I took was to stop all admissions into final classes. If you want to go into any school, whether you have been out of school for many years or not, you must go back to the second year as a full student. The Ministry of Education also insists that only those who write the Mock exam in a school can write the WAEC and NECO exam. Remember that the Mock exam is written in JSII and SS II. After the Mock exam, the list (of candidates) is signed by the Commissioner himself. Only that list will be authentic for WAEC and NECO registration. That way, we will cut down this desperation of external candidates. Instead of them to register for the external (November/December) examination, they come in for the school exam. Principals in various schools have also been caught. Remember that some schools were blacklisted, so the principals of such schools have been reprimanded, so that people know the consequences of their actions.
The Federal Government recently sent teachers to all the states of the federation, whose salaries will be paid for two years after which the various states are expected to give them permanent appointments. Do you plan to retain the teachers sent to your state?
Definitely, because the statistics that we have in our primary schools are not impressive. Some schools, particularly in the rural areas, do not have enough teachers. We have set in motion the process of replacing teachers that left the system. Some have retired and over the years, because of the ban on employment, they were not replaced. Then we will recruit more teachers, especially science teachers at the secondary level, and more teachers at the primary school level. The Governor has already approved the replacement of 177 teachers, who have left secondary schools.
How much fund is the Benue State government committing to education now?
Funding in Nigeria can be viewed in two ways. One, resources are allocated and released, but are not properly utilised. But we are assuring the citizens of the state and Nigeria that resources will be properly applied and effectively used so that we can generate positive results. We have already started to do that.
States say that they do not have enough resources to run their education. But many of them, including your state have not been able to access their Universal Basic Education Funds for the last quarter of last year and this year due to the problem of counterpart funds. What are you doing about this?
That's part of what I was telling you about the efforts of the new administration in the state. We had about N1.6 Billion to access and because the last administration did not live up to the counterpart funding, it dropped to N1.2 Billion. When you don't draw, other states compete for the resources. Within two weeks of this administration, His Excellency, Hon. Gabriel Suswam approved the payment of N400 million, which was our counterpart funding and we are currently accessing the N1.2 Billion. The projects have been advertised and the tenders close. As soon as we a through with this, we will also access the 2007 funds for the state. That is to show you the seriousness of this administration.
You mentioned this in passing earlier on. But specifically, what are you taking away from Paris and how would this impact on education in Benue State ?
What I am taking away from Paris is a new era in education policy, applicable in Nigeria , where states and federal government cooperate and coordinate education because the state governments control about 80 percent of the institutions in the country. Primary education is basically at the local government level and about 80 percent of secondary education, at the state level. Out of about 89 universities, the Federal Government has just about 24, so the states and the private sector have the bulk.
What I have seen found here in Paris is that there are lots literature and programmes on education for all, things that the federal government can incorporate at every step they take, so that there is a well coordinated national policy on education at all levels. I must commend the effort of the Minister of Education, Dr. Aja-Nwachukwu, who invited some Commissioners of Education to join him. It shows that the Federal Government is interested in carrying the states along.
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