DSP IKE EKWEREMADU CALL FOR A REGULATORY FRAME WORK TO ADDRESS IMPEDIMENTS TO PUBLIC- PRIVATE PARTNERSHIP IN THE EDUCATION SECTOR.
The Deputy President of the Senate, Chief Ike Ekweremadu has canvassed the return of schools belonging to the Church and other religious organizations to their original owners, noting that government has done well in building upon the successes recorded before the forceful takeover.
Chief Ekweremadu stated this at an event in Enugu. He observed that the handover of schools by the Anambra State government to their original owners, saw the State rise from previous 25th and 26th positions on a table of 36 States, to first position in National Examination Council (NECO) performance in 2011 and 2013.
Senator Ekweremadu, however, noted that such handover of schools should not serve as a ploy by States to evade the responsibility of funding quality education for their citizens. He said the Government of Anambra State under former Governor Peter Obi not only handed over 1,040 primary schools to the Church in 2011, but also voted N6 billion for them, knowing that it would still be serving the same Anambra people.
He further called for regulatory frameworks to remove impediments to public-private partnership in the education sector, urging the Church and religious organizations to address the concerns, such as high cost of educational institutions owned by the mission.