The Oyo State government has announced a partnership with the police to enforce peace and order across public schools in the state, warning that it will no longer tolerate acts of hooliganism.
Commissioner for Education, Science and Technology, Segun Olayiwola, issued the warning over the weekend, stressing that the government is taking decisive steps to safeguard the progress achieved in the education sector under the leadership of Governor Seyi Makinde.
Olayiwola attributed the turnaround in the state’s education sector to the governor’s visionary leadership since assuming office in 2019, noting that the sector had been in a state of decline before his administration’s intervention.
“The transformation we see today is a result of Governor Makinde’s commitment to rebuilding a sector that was almost at the brink of collapse,” he said.
The commissioner cautioned parents and guardians to discourage any activity that could derail ongoing reforms.
He emphasised that the state would now strictly enforce the ban on mobile phone usage by students in public schools and take tougher measures against examination malpractice.
Highlighting various achievements, Olayiwola said the administration has significantly increased budgetary allocation to education, improved infrastructure, reduced the number of out-of-school children, and expanded the teaching workforce.
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“These efforts have led to improved enrolment figures, a decline in infrastructure deficit, and a noticeable rise in the quality of education in the state,” he added.
He also noted that the state’s renewed commitment has attracted support from development partners and Old Students Associations, contributing to the progress in schools.
Olayiwola revealed that the Ministry of Education, the largest in the state, now has 12 full departments led by Level 17 officers, 22 permanent secretaries, 10 Tutors-General, and 10 Inspectors-General, all working to enhance educational outcomes.
He further disclosed that under Governor Makinde’s administration, over 15,000 teaching and non-teaching staff have been recruited to serve 646 secondary and 2,506 primary schools across the state.
In addition to overseeing public schools, the ministry continues to perform regulatory oversight functions over private educational institutions in Oyo State.
He said, “By the time this administration came into being in 2019, the education sector in the state was in a bad shape. The governor had to highlight the problems we encountered on the ground.
“One of the challenges then was that there was a high percentage of out-of-school children. We had a high percentage of out-of-school children, poor performances in WAEC, NECO, GCE, and JAMB and all that. We also had one and a half universities; the Technical University and half of LAUTECH due to the joint ownership with Osun State.
“Also, subventions to tertiary institutions were not paid. There was an agreed subvention to be paid to these higher institutions, but it was not paid for years, and so, there were frequent strike actions in our tertiary institutions. We also had the challenge of inadequate facilities and infrastructure in the basic and secondary schools.
“Non-payment of counterpart funding for intervention projects was also another challenge. We lost opportunities to bring in counterpart funds from outside the country because of non-payment of our own share at that time. This was because when they came with that duty, the state is expected to pay either 10 per cent of the cost of the infrastructure or 20 per cent, but to pay 10 per cent or 20 per cent was a problem for the former administration.
“Schools were also understaffed. But, because of the innovation that Governor Makinde brought into fixing the challenges that faced the education sector and because of his ingenuity, all these challenges have been surmounted.
“Upon his assumption of office, children who dropped out of schools rejoined and the major evidence of this is that between 2023 and now, the number of public primary schools has risen from 2,449 to 2,506, while the number of public secondary schools, which was 573 in 2023, has risen to 696, signifying a significant improvement in the number of schools.
“Up till now, people are still approaching us for approval for the establishment of more public schools. With the support of a development partner, which provided a counterpart fund, we have reduced the number of out-of-school children drastically.”
In the area of reducing the infrastructure deficit in the education sector, the Commissioner maintained that the state government has built additional model schools and classrooms, pointing out how the state recently renovated and equipped 105 public schools, while work is ongoing on another set of schools.
He added that the state has also succeeded in improving access for special needs students, orphans and vulnerable children.
