"There is no reason whatsoever why parents (in Abia) should not send their children to school."
The Abia State Government has said that from 1 January 2025, it will make it a punishable offence for parents or guardians who fail to send their children or wards to school.
The Commissioner for Information and Culture, Okey Kanu, made this known on Monday during a press briefing on the outcome of the State Executive Council meeting at the Government House, Umuahia.
Mr Kanu said that this initiative reflected the state's commitment to ensuring that every child received a basic education.
He said free schooling is available up to the end of junior secondary school in line with the 2006 Abia State Child Rights Law.
"There is no reason whatsoever why parents should not send their children to school.
"The issue of indigency is no longer the reason for non-acquisition of free and basic education in Abia State. From the 1st of January 2025, when this policy will come into full effect, parents who default will be prosecuted under that law.
"This course is part of the reforms that are ongoing in the educational sector," he said.
He said the policy underscored the government's stance that financial constraints should no longer be a barrier to education for any child in Abia.
According to him, the initiative aligns with the government's ongoing reforms in the education sector.
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Mr Kanu said the present administration had introduced several key policies and initiatives to advance education, infrastructure, and workers' welfare.
He said that the government order for the relocation of Umuahia campus of Abia State University back to its Uturu main campus remains firm.
Mr Kanu expressed the government's readiness to engage with affected stakeholders to address any concerns and said that the decision was made with the students and the institution's best interests in mind.
On the new minimum wage, he expressed the government's readiness to dialogue with organised labor to address any concerns about its implementation.
Mr Kanu said that the present administration desired to ensure that transparency and mutual understanding existed between the government and labour unions.
He said the government had approved contracts on infrastructure for the reconstruction and rehabilitation of nine roads across Abia's three senatorial districts.
Mr Kanu said that the government had given directives for the immediate rehabilitation of the Osisioma flyover, which had started deteriorating two years after the previous administration commissioned it.
He reiterated the resolve of the present administration to deliver substantial infrastructure improvements.
