By Felix Khanoba and Daniel Tyokua
A group under the auspices of Initiative for Citizens’ Rights, Accountability and Development (ICRAD) has petitioned the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) over a levy imposed on students in public senior secondary schools in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).
The group alleged that the affected students, particularly those in SS1 and SS 2 are being compelled to pay N1,500 per session outside the official fees recognised by FCT administration.
According to Hassan Luqman, Executive Director of ICRAD, the group’s attention was drawn to the obnoxious fees when it discovered that the payment was bypassing the Treasury Single Account platform of government.
The non-governmental group said the was being paid into a private account under Shokami Consulting Limited, Zenith Bank Account number 1014972989.
ICRAD said it was suspicious for students of public schools to be paying into a private company’s account.
The group, therefore urged the anti-graft agemcy to launch investigations into the fraud in order to avert a situation where parents, guardians or students not to fall victims of anh racketeering.
“It has come to our notice that the Senior Secondary School Students in the FCT, particularly those in SS1 and 2 are being forced to pay the sum of N1,500 per session outside the official fees recognised by the FCTA.
“This fee surreptitiously tied to School Management Systems, only allow the students to check their results online.
“Surprisingly is the fact that the fees is not paid into any of the recognised school account linked to government Treasury Single Account TSA, but into a private company’s account.
“Assuming without conceding that the said fee is for consulting services rendered to FCT secondary school board, it is the responsibility of the board to pay for consultancy under the Public Procurement Act and not the students.
“Imposing fees for consultancy services on parents, guardians and students is contrary to the fundamental principles of procurement which requires availability of budgetary allocations and funds for all procurements, including consultancy services as enshrined under section 16 of the Public Procurement Act, 2007,”the petition further noted.
But reacting to the issue raised by ICRAD, the Director FCT Secondary Education Board, Mrs Nanre Emeje said Shokami Consulting Limited is the firm that Parents Teachers Association (PTA) approved to be providing schools information system in all the senior secondary schools in the territory.
“The whole project and programme is under PTA, the parents are those that engaged the consulting firm. I am aware that the PTA took to that project because of digital teaching and learning, I believe that they look at it and saw that is a worthwhile proposal for them. It’s entirely a PTA project, I believe they have their own agreement.
“When the PTA officials contacted us we gave them advice on how best to go about it, we accepted the scheme because sometime parents don’t receive their children results, the children too play pranks by telling their parents that school don’t give them results, with this initiative the cases of students claiming that schools don’t give results won’t be there.
“Parents too were coming to ask how can the issue be solved, we told them that there is school information system whereby parents can access their children results without the children knowing, they can log in and access it. Sometime when this children collect their results they go and tear it because of poor performance, and would not like their parents to see. It is a system whereby all the children are on the data base.
On the alleged illegal levy of N1,500 being paid by students in senior secondary schools, she explained that the amount is five hundred naira per term, making it one thousand five hundred naira for the whole academic session (year).
“The levy is not from government, it is a private arrangement so they are those that decided where they will be paying the money, it is purely PTA project not FCT Administration project, or FCT Secondary Education Board. There is a feedback from the schools, even at the board we also monitor the school management system, I don’t think there is anything to worry about, ” she said.
