… Our Directive was for public schools, those grant aided by the government wanting to travel outside the State must seek STETSCOM permission.
The Executive Chairman of Kogi State Science, Technical Education and Teaching Service Commission, Hon. Cecilia E. Cook, has despelled insinuation making the rounds that the Commission has stopped the payment of WAEC fees by private individuals wanting to assist secondary school students, described the statement made by the
Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan Campaign Organization as misleading.
According to her the decision was taken by the Commission to protect students from traveling outside the state for activities like debate and quiz competition without the knowledge of the Commission.
Mrs. Cook said owing to insecurity situation in the country the Commission she explained has been inundated by public schools and those grant aided by the government who travel outside the State without the Commission’s knowledge to seek permission, said no issue of payment of WAEC fees was mentioned in the internal memo released to Principals through the Commission.
She described the Statement titled: Yahaya Bello Panics, Stops Natasha’s WAEC Grant, States Security Concern by NAUCO as misleading and far from the truth.
According to Mrs Cook, the Commission warned that secondary school principals are to comply with the instruction, never mentioned the issues of payment of WAEC by private individuals to assist secondary school students.
Below is the excerpt of letter from the Commission which read thus:
“All principals of public and grant aided schools must obtain permission from the commission for any internal or external programme.
“As a result of the security situation in our nation, all the STETSCOM Zonal directors are directed to inform all the principals in their respective zones, that students’ participation in Zonal programme outside their schools and external programme outside the state is strictly on permission by the authority of STETSCOM.
“The Zonal Directors should sternly warn the Principals in their zone, that should any Principal default this instruction, he or she will certainly and surely be shown the way out.
Strictly comply with this instruction, please”, the memo read.