GOVERNOR Abiola Ajimobi of Oyo State has vowed that his administration would not leave any stone unturned in its determination to lift up the falling standard of education in the state and rescue the sector total collapse.
He stated this while inaugurating the School Monitoring and Supervision Project in collaboration with the University of Ibadan, at the Ibadan Civic Centre on Tuesday.
The governor, who described education as the soul of any society, expressed regret that the deteriorating standard of education had impacted negatively on the performance of students in public examinations.
He laid the unfortunate development partly at the doorstep of the teachers, most of whom he said had adopted lackadaisical attitude in the discharge of their responsibilities, warning that any teacher found misusing productive hours to sell wares in schools would be shown the way out.
“I feel sorry that education has deteriorated as this; so when you are asking for increment in salary, even though you are not wholly responsible for the dismal performance; I know the environment is a factor and so many other things. I am challenging our teachers to please rededicate themselves.
“When I drive round and I see students roaming the streets and teachers selling gold, selling necklace, I feel ashamed. I have even seen teachers who find it difficult to construct simple sentences correctly,’’ the governor said.
He directed the state Ministry of Education to develop a year-round training and re-training programmes for teachers, adding “whatever is needed to help our teachers, we shall not hesitate to do it’’.
Governor Ajimobi stressed the need to collaborate with the University of Ibadan in order to have a knowledge-based development.
He disclosed that a collaborative committee would soon be set up to enhance the socio-economic development of the state, adding that similar collaboration had been made with the University College Hospital (UCH), Ibadan in the area of healthcare delivery.
In his remarks, the Vice-Chancellor of the university, Prof. Isaac Adewole assured that his institution would develop and deliver a strategy that would improve education and enhance the ranking of the state in public examinations.
He added that the school monitoring and supervision project would lead to the production of data base of available manpower in public schools with a view to knowing the appropriateness of those teaching in public schools.