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EDUCATION NEWS & LIFE

Kwara to give private schools grants, interest-free loans

Gov. AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq of Kwara, on Friday, promised interest-free loan and grants to private school owners to enable them pay their workers and prevent job loss.

AbdulRazaq made the promise in a statement by his Chief Press Secretary, Mr Rafiu Ajakaiye, in Ilorin on Friday.

The governor, during a virtual meeting with members of the National Association of Proprietors of Private Schools (NAPPS), said that he would “not be blind to the plight” of any citizen,

“These include, proprietors and workers across private schools in the state who have been hard hit by the COVID-19 pandemic due to the closure of schools and some other businesses.

“The government will, therefore, consider your request for grants or loan, which of course will be interest-free.

“We can do that as we did for transport workers but we will need to have the right database to know the number of private schools, the teachers and their students in the state,” he said.

The governor said that such database would be key for efficiency, transparency and success of the move.

AbdulRasaq recalled how the administration had established a hitch-free and transparent bursary regime, with digital registration and verification of all applicants in 2019.

“The issue of database is critical for planning. We want to know how many private schools we have and where in the state.

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COVID-19

“If we do so, we can give land (to those who may need it) and issue Certificate of Occupancy as well as other relevant documents,” he added.

AbdulRazaq urged the proprietors to work out the modalities for the financial support with the education ministry, noting that schools currently registered with the government and paying their taxes would be prioritised in the intervention.

He called on private school owners to invest in virtual schooling if they have not done so, as the pandemic and the closure of schools might drag on until it was absolutely safe to reopen.

AbdulRazaq said that the decision of the state must align with the position of the Federal Government on reopening of schools.

He, however, added that all schools should ramp up their preparations for school reopening by putting in place safety measures such as hand washing bay.

He also said that the government would consider giving palliatives to those that did not get in April, especially members of the Association of Model Islamic Schools Nigeria (AMIS).

Dr Rahman Lateef, NAPPS President, commended the governor for the hands of fellowship extended to the association during the lockdown.

Lateef urged the government to consider partial reopening of the schools in the state, especially for terminal classes.

He said that private schools had nearly 100,000 staff strength, saying that the lockdown blocked revenues for proprietors.

He called on the government to help the private school owners with grants or loans as they could not pay salaries and take care of the facilities.

Categories
HEADLINES POLITICS

Kwara Governor to EFCC: Come and investigate me

Kwara State Governor, AbduRahman AbduRasaq, has invited the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission to come to his state to investigate his government.

He said this following an allegation that he has diverted local government funds to the tune of N300m.

Here is a statement to this effect, signed by his media officer, Rafiu Ajakaye:

“For the sake of accountability and transparency, the Governor is hereby calling in the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to conduct urgent probe into funds so far received as allocations and spent by the 16 local government between May 29 and now,” the statement said.

Separately, the Governor will also be setting up a Panel of inquiry in the immediate to look into the same issues. Members of the panel and its terms of reference would be announced soon.

This probe is borne out of the fact that this administration has not touched a kobo of money belonging to the local governments. It has nothing to hide. But for abundance of caution, the Governor will be tasking not just the EFCC but also a panel of inquiry with members drawn from various backgrounds to investigate the LG funds, how they have been spent, and expose any mismanagement or diversion of the funds (if any).

The call becomes necessary in view of the outrageous claims by some persons that money to the tune of N300m was diverted monthly from LG accounts. The administration feels this deserves to be probed and laid to rest because governance is about public trust.

Similarly, His Excellency appeals to the House of Assembly — which comprises the elected representatives of the people with oversight powers — to hold a public hearing on the said matter.

The Governor restates that he would not be found mismanaging or siphoning public funds. He maintains his stand, which dated back to his days in the Congress for Progressive Change (CPC), that the local governments should be allowed to manage their own funds with minimal or no supervision by the State as the law may allow. He insists that any official found to have diverted or mismanaged public funds under him would be made to account for same as prescribed under the law.”

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EFCC

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Categories
NEWS & LIFE

Kwara records first COVID-19 death, four new cases

The Kwara State Government on Saturday announced the death of a COVID-19 case.

The announcement was contained in a statement by Rafiu Ajakaye, the Chief Press Secretary to Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq and spokesman of the Kwara State COVID-19 Task Force.

Ajakaye said the late case had recently arrived Kwara Kwara State from Lagos State with his wife and a child shortly after he suffered stroke at his Lagos base.

Before his death, the government had treated him, his wife and their child as suspected cases and samples were taken from them.

The results of their samples came back positive.

Ajakaye added: “Unfortunately, he died early Saturday morning even before the family got to know about their COVID status.

“He has been buried accordingly.

“Everyone involved in the burial has now had their samples taken.

“Because of the peculiarity of this development, the Rapid Response Team has moved in to bring all those involved into the isolation centre, including the wife and the child.

“We pray to God to repose his soul.

“We urge citizens to see COVID-19 for what it is: a deadly and highly contagious virus that requires adherence to all safety protocols, including obeying the lockdown order.

“We repeat that there is no shame or blame in contracting the virus as this is a global pandemic from which no one is immune.

“We commiserate with his family on this painful development while also wishing all of our patients quick recovery.

“The government also announces four new positive cases of COVID-19 — from amongst those who sneaked into the state from the northwestern axis of the country.”

With the latest confirmed cases, the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in Kwara State has hit 28.

Of these, 19 are active, while nine have been discharged.