SERAP Asks Governor Okowa To Disclose Spending On Primary Education

 

The Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) has asked the Governor of Delta State, Ifeanyi Okowa to disclose details of the budgetary allocations and actual spending by the government to provide access to free and quality primary school education between 2015 and 2019.

The Deputy Director, SERAP, Kolawole Oluwadare, in a statement on Sunday, said that the need for the Freedom of Information request is in reaction to the case of “Success Adegor, who was sent home because her parents could not pay the illegal school fee/levy of N900 and the insufficient and poor-quality education infrastructure of Okotie-Eboh Primary School 1, Sapele.”

The group also gave the governor a seven-day ultimatum to, upon which, appropriate legal actions would be instigated by SERAP.

“If we have not heard from you within 7 days of the receipt and/or publication of this letter, the Registered Trustees of SERAP shall take all appropriate legal actions to compel you to comply with our request.

“Despite the huge resources available to your government and the massive budgetary allocations to primary education in your State including from the UBEC funds, several of the around 1,124 primary schools across the State are in shambles, and with very poor teaching facilities, thereby jeopardizing the futures of tens of thousands of Nigerian children in the State.”

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The FOI request read in part: “SERAP notes that since assuming office, your government has received over N7.8bn from Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC). Your government has also received funds from federal allocations to Delta State. Your government accessed over N3bn of UBEC funds between 2015 and 2016, while also reportedly approved the release of N1.28bn counterpart fund to enable it access UBEC funds for 2017.  Your government also received N213bn from Federation Accounts Allocation Committee (FAAC) in 2018, at an average of N17.8bn monthly.”

“We urge you to provide details of budgetary allocations and actual spending by your government between 2015 and 2019, including specific projects carried out to improve access to free and quality primary education in your state, the locations of such projects and the primary schools that have benefited from the projects.”

source https://www.channelstv.com/2019/04/07/serap-asks-governor-okowa-to-disclose-spending-on-primary-education/