Education Archives - Page 9 of 16

Lekki Adult Literacy And Vocational Centre Holds Inaugural Graduation, Matriculates 60

The Lekki Adult Literacy And Vocational Centre has held its inaugural graduation ceremony and matriculated about 60 learners.

This was done in an event held on Saturday, 11th of June, 2022 to celebrate the learners and to also kick off the ‘Kick Illiteracy Out Of Lagos’ campaign, an initiative of the conveners of LALVC focused on repairing the faulty foundation of the hopeless by giving them education.

The event had the representative of the Lagos state government, Honourable Tokunbo Wahab, the special adviser to the LASG on education well represented by Mrs Seriki Olayemi, the chairman of Ibeju-Lekki local government, Hon Abdullahi Sesan, a former minister of trade and investment, among a host of many others.

According to coordinator, Deacon Joe Mbulu, the program has a multiplier effect because it will help kick illiteracy out of Lagos. He noted that the program is a 9-month program certified by the Lagos state Educational board while explaining that in the year 2021/2022, over 60 learners had their matriculation and only 25 people were able to pass the examination set by the Lagos state government, he also made it known that over 60 are getting matriculating for the 2022/2023 session.

Mrs Seriki Olayemi, the representative of the Lagos state government lauded the initiative while stating that LALVC is collaborating with the government in pushing illiteracy out of Lagos state. She revealed that the Lagos state government launched the ‘Kick Illiteracy Out Of Lagos’ campaign in 2016 and RCCG through CSR has been able to support the government in that aspect.

‘’This is a very good programme and in most cases, it gives opportunity to those who didn’t have opportunities to go to school when they were young. Lagos state on its own part is really trying, all we need is collaborating so by establishing this kind of Centre, they are collaborating with the Lagos state government and in turn, we give learning materials and pay two facilitators.’’

‘’We launched kick illiteracy out of Lagos in 2016, we visited all the local governments and we have 723 centres in Lagos state and we are doing a lot of things to ensure we keep illiteracy out of Lagos state. We also encourage them more so learners can participate in some of our programmes like quiz competition.’’

Also, the chairman of Ibeju-Lekki local government, Hon Abdullahi Sesan applauded the initiative, stating that he was excited seeing that hope has been restored for some who didn’t have the opportunity to have a formal education while growing up.

He advised the graduating students to continue pushing and not look back while calling on organizations to also embrace the need to kick illiteracy out of their communities.

‘’We must congratulate those that have benefited from this initiative and I want to commend the people behind this, they have taken a major step to kick illiteracy out of the community and of course, those that benefited will see a better future. We can see the excitement in their faces, I was happy myself because being in government makes us see the damage illiteracy has done to our community.’’

‘’I advise those graduating not to look back because the foundation has been laid, they have been empowered with knowledge. I call on Lagosians, organizations, and religious organisations to support the government in fighting illiteracy in the state.’’

One of the matriculating students, Gerrard Abiodun made it known that when he joined the programme, many criticized him because he was a bit educated but kept at it because he wants to be a better person that he is presently.

‘’To me, this programme is very good, when I first joined, they told me how they were, they were not able to read but at this moment, they can write and spell on their own, RCCG needs reward for this.If there is anything I want to tell the organizers is that God will continue to bless them, this is the kind of thing we need in the state.’’

‘’This programme isn’t something you should be ashamed of, I’m a teacher and I have been educated but I have never been a graduate. I have seen people criticizing me for coming here but when they see the end result, I know they will celebrate with me.’’

Another matriculating student, Williams revealed that the initiative is a privilege for him in order to repair his faulty condition. He explained that if illiteracy is kicked out of Nigeria, insecurity will not be an issue meaning RCCG CTL province 20 has taken a bold step to end insecurity in Nigeria.

‘’It’s a privilege for us to have this Centre to repair our faulty condition, some of us didn’t have the opportunity earlier but with this programme, we have gotten an enabling environment where we can improve ourselves. I expect to become a better person, have a better education and the same way I have received it, I should replicate and give back to the society.’’

‘’Nigeria is suffering a lot because of illiteracy and many issues we are having is lack of education like banditry, insecurities but by educating myself, I have the opportunity to return what I have received to the society and make Nigeria a better place to be.’’

‘’I want to say a big thank you to RCCG LP 20, it’s a big project but God on our sides, we are able to overcome and move forward.’’

The Lekki Adult Literacy Centre And Vocational Centre launched its kick illiteracy out of Lagos state campaign in a way to empower and restore hope to Lagosians who are interested in learning in order to be valuable to their societies.

The movement, which is one of the Corporate Social Responsibilities (CSR) of the Redeemed Christian Church Of God (RCCG) LP 20 started in 2020 out of the need to bridge the gap between the elites and ordinary populace who are disadvantaged for lack of education.

JUST IN: ASUU President Rejects N50m Intervention To End Strike

Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) President, Prof. Emmanuel Osodeke has rejected N50 million cash intervention to end the ongoing strike.

Recall that ASUU has been on strike since February over funding of the revitalisation of public universities, Earned Academic Allowances, University Transparency Accountability Solution (UTAS) and promotion arrears and the renegotiation of 2009 ASUU-FG Agreement and the inconsistency in the Integrated Personnel Payroll Information System.

ASUU President, Prof. Osodeke, and his team were on Saturday morning invited by the host of Berekete Family radio, Ahmad Isah, popularly known as Ordinary President.

According to DailyTrust, ASUU President was invited to explain to Nigerians the problems and reasons the union is still on strike.

Isah also said that he had set up a special intervention bank account domiciled in TAJ Bank to raise funds for the union, with a view to ending the strike.

To convince ASUU to buy into the idea of the intervention, Isah publicly showed the N50 million cash donated by Governor Udom Emmanuel of Akwa Ibom State.

Immediately after the money was displayed, ASUU President frowned at the development, saying they should not be associated with such.

At that point, Isah threatened to discontinue the intervention and many Nigerians who phoned in during the programme described ASUU as ”insensitive”.

JUST IN: ASUP Suspends Strike, Directs Members To Resume Work On Monday

Lecturers in public polytechnics across the country will resume on May 30, 2022, following a directive from the Academic Staff Union of Polytechnics (ASUP).

The union had, on May 16, 2022, commenced a two-week warning strike over the failure of the government to meet some lingering demands.

Some of the demands which the union listed had included the payment of N15 billion revitalisation fund for polytechnics; payment of minimum wage arrears; review of conditions of service, among others.

According to The PUNCH the Federal Government commenced the payment of the minimum wage arrears, not just for lecturers of polytechnics, but also for university lecturers and other tertiary institution workers in the country.

While the union had said the payment of the minimum wage arrears was not a part of its demands, ASUP had said otherwise.

“The two weeks definite strike of the union will be rounding off on the 29th of May, 2022, as agreed by the emergency meeting of the NEC. Consequently, the union is requesting members to resume duties effective 30th of May, 2022, while hoping that government will take advantage of the window to address the five outstanding items.

“Further directives/ updates shall be released after the 103rd meeting of NEC which is scheduled to hold in the month of June, 2022, during which the situation shall be reviewed,” ASUP stated in the statement signed by its national publicity secretary, Abdullahi Yalwa.

According to ASUP, the government is yet to meet the following demands proposed by the union:

“Release of the approved N15 billion revitalisation fund for the sector. This issue is still stuck in the Federal Ministry of Finance with a promise of follow up action by the Education ministry.

“Release of arrears of CONTISS 15 migration for the lower cadre. This issue is still at the committee level set up to resolve the dispute on the contested 2014/15 verification report.

“Release of the Scheme of Service and Conditions of Service: The document is still awaiting approval as it has been recalled from the Head of Service for further review.

“Continued delay in the appointment of substantive Rectors for Federal Polytechnics in Mubi, Offa, and Kaduna.

“Resolution of issues with members in Colleges of Agriculture: The issue is still pending as a resolution will require an interface between the Education ministry and Agriculture ministry.”

Students Destroy School Properties As Principal Absconds With N2m WAEC Enrolment Fee in Edo

A yet-to-be identified teacher at Gilgal Private School, Edo State, has allegedly absconded with the sum of N2 million meant for the registration of students for the forthcoming West African Examination Senior Secondary School Examinations (WASSCE).

It was learnt that the money was handed over to the teacher for safe keeping owing to the lack of commercial banks in Iguobazuwa, the headquarters of Ovia South-west Local Government Area where the school is located.

According to a report by Daily Post, an alarm was raised by one of the parents of the students that eventually led to the arrest of the proprietor of the school by police operatives of Iguobazuwa division.

ASUU: Students To Remain At Home As FG’s Meeting With Union Ends In Deadlock

The meeting held between representatives of the Federal Government and the Academic Staff Union of Universities on Thursday has ended in a deadlock.

The Chief of Staff to the President, Prof Agboola Gambari, and the Minister of Labour and Employment, Chris Ngige, were unable to convince the union to put an end to their ongoing strike action.

The meeting was co-chaired by the Sultan of Sokoto, Sa’ad Abubakar, the President’s Chief of Staff and the Christian Association of Nigeria’s (CAN) President, Dr. Supo Ayokunle.

It was held at the banquet hall of the Presidential Villa, Abuja, and had in attendance other registered trade unions in universities, as well as identified interest groups and civil society groups.

It was revealed that the FG and the Nigeria Inter-Religious Council (NIREC) made attempts to persuade ASUU to call of the strike and reopen the tertiary institutions during a closed-door session, but the Union’s leadership declined saying the government had to fulfill part of their demands which they would then use as incentive to convince their members to end the strike.

Speaking on the outcome of the meeting later, Ngige said the FG was able to reach an agreement with ASUU, adding that specific agreements would begin being implemented next week and that issues of wage review and renegotiation of the 2009 agreement would be addressed soon.
“We have reached some agreements and we hope that by next week, those agreements will be maturing and the different unions will have something to tell their members, so that they can call off the strike.

“We have put some timelines for some aspects like renegotiation of 2009 agreement in terms of condition of service and wage review. So, we are hopeful that by next weekend, the unions will see a conclusion of that area,” the Minister said.

Also speaking, the ASUU President, Prof Emmanuel Osedeke, recalled how NIREC had intervened in November last year to resolve some of the issues they had with the government, noting how the Sultan and CAN leader met with met with President Buhari who set up a three-man committee which met with the union for the first time on Thursday.

“Why our people are worried is this: even when we had gone on strike for 12 weeks, that committee is meeting with us for the first time today. Suppose we didn’t go on strike, it’s going to take three years. That is the problem we are having in the system. I believe these problems can be resolved within three days if the will is there on both sides”, he said.

THE WHISTLER had reported that ASUU extended its strike by another three months on Monday, May 9th 2022, following the end of its last extension. The roll-over strike was effective from 12:01 am, May 8, 2022.

Some other demands include payment of earned academic allowances, funds for the revitalization of public universities, promotion arrears, and poor funding of state universities.

ASUU has also insisted on the release of the reports of the government’s visitation panels to federal universities and regular payment of salary to lecturers.

Breaking: Buhari Breaks Silence On ASUU Strike

President Muhammadu Buhari has finally shown concern about the prolonged strike by the Academic Staff Union of Universities, ASUU.

ASUU had embarked on a month warning strike in early February over the failure of the Buhari’s government to meet its demands.

The varsity lecturers pressed home its demands, with the prominent ones being the renegotiation of the ASUU/FG 2009 agreement and the sustainability of the university autonomy by deploying UTAS to replace the government’s “imposed” (IPPIS).

Also in its demands is the release of the reports of visitation panels to federal universities, distortions in salary payment challenges, funding for revitalisation of public universities, earned academic allowance, poor funding of state universities and promotion arrears.

After a series of deliberations, ASUU’s demands were still not met at the end of the warning strike in March.

Without hesitation, ASUU on Monday extended its ongoing roll-over strike by another three months to give the government more time to meet its demands.

Naija News understands that President Buhari has been mute about the lingering strike which has caused university students across the country to return to their parent’s homes while others find their way into society doing dirty jobs.

However, the Nigerian leader on Thursday urged ASUU to consider the plight of the students and call off the industrial action.

Naija News understands that Buhari expressed his concern today at the 19th National Productivity Day Celebration and Conferment of National Productivity Order of Merit Award, held at the State House Conference Centre, Abuja.

The number one citizen also appealed to the National Association of Nigerian Students, NANS, to exercise patience as the government tries to resolve the crisis.

Meanwhile, the President is reported to have earlier directed his Chief of Staff, Ibrahim Gambari, Minister of Education and Labour and Employment, Adamu Adamu and Chris Ngige, respectively, to address the concerns of the striking aggrieved workers’ unions.

WAEC Releases 2022 Timetable, Exams Commence May 9

The West African Examination Council (WAEC) has released the official WAEC Timetable for May/June SSCE Exams for Senior School leaving students.

The exam will commence from 9th May to 28th June 2022.

The Exam body hereby urges candidates to abide by the rules and regulations guiding the conduct of the examination by shunning all acts of malpractice and obeying all Covid-19 protocols that have been put in place at the examination centres.

Download 2022-WAEC-TIMETABLE for candidates in The Gambia, Liberia, Nigeria and Sierra Leone.
Important Notes:

The difference in Time on Question Paper and Timetable: Where the duration indicated on the question paper differs from that on the timetable, the one on the question paper should be followed.

Question Papers to be Given Out in Advance of the Dates They Are to be Taken

Visual Art 3

Paper 3A – Instructions will be given to schools two weeks before the paper is due to be taken.

Paper 3B – Question paper will be given to candidates two weeks before it is due to be taken.

Paper 3C -Candidates will be required to execute their projects within six months of the examination year. The period of submission of art pieces will be communicated to schools by the Council.

Block Laying, Bricklaying and Concrete Works 3 (Practical): Question paper will be given to candidates three days before the paper is due to be taken.

Project Work Papers: The question papers for project work for Basketry, Graphic Design, Leatherwork, Ceramics, Sculpture, Picture Making, Textiles, Jewellery, Painting & Decorating, Dyeing & Bleaching and Leather Goods Manufacturing & Repair will be forwarded to candidates two weeks in advance of the examination. The exact date for the delivery of question papers to candidates will be communicated to them through their schools.

Extra Time for Candidates with Special Needs: Candidates with Special Needs should be allowed one and half times the time allotted to other candidates.

ASUU May Extend Strike By 4 Months, Says FG Has Zero Feelings For Students, Parents

The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has said that its ongoing warning strike may be extended for 16 weeks due to failure of the Federal Government to meet the union’s demands.

ASUU President, Emmanuel Osodeke, told THE WHISTLER in a phone interview at the weekend that if at the end of its two months strike the government has not made any concrete steps to address their demands, the Union would meet and decide if they should commence a 16-week roll-over strike.

The ongoing strike which began on February 14 is now in its seventh week.

Osodeke said, “At the end of these two months, we will meet, evaluate the situation and if the government has not done anything, my congress will also advise that we should roll over the strike again. Maybe for 16 weeks.”

Emmanuel Osodeke, ASUU President
According to him, the government does not care about the plight of the Nigerian students or their parents because people in the government don’t send their children to schools in the country.

“This is what we’ve been saying since the beginning. These people don’t have any feelings for the Nigerian students or their parents, and they have no feelings for the system just because their children are not here.

“If their children were students here, they would’ve taken action long ago, solved the problem, and then schools resume. They have just made it clear now that they don’t care about these children,” he explained.

The ASUU President stressed that the Federal Government has made no attempt to meet with them to negotiate terms on how to end the ongoing strike.

“There has been no meeting to resolve the issue between ASUU and the FG. They’ve not reached out, we are still waiting for them.

He added, “The government is not really interested in education. If they were interested, they wouldn’t allow the strike to last more than 1 week but this is the 7th week and they’ve not made any comment.”

Asked what he thinks about the protests by the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) over the strike, Osodeke said the students have a right to protest seeing as the system is not working for them.

“As Nigerians, they have a right to protest if the system is not working because we have given our own reason why we are on strike.

“It is in the interest of the students and the whole community so as students they have the right to protest,” he said.

ASUU had commenced a warning strike on February 14, 2022, to intensify its demands which include the renegotiation of its 2009 agreement with the government and deployment of the University Transparency and Accountability Solution (UTAS) to replace the Federal Government’s Integrated Personnel Payroll Information System (IPPIS).

On March 14th, the Union extended the strike by two months, until May 14th, indicating that the strike is not a fresh one but rather a continuation of the 10-month strike which began in March 2020 and was suspended on December 23, 2020.

Other demands by ASUU include payment of earned academic allowances, funds for the revitalization of public universities, promotion arrears, and poor funding of state universities.

ASUU has also insisted on the release of the reports of the government’s visitation panels to federal universities and regular payment of salary to lecturers.

ASUU Strike: NANS Orders Students To Begin Street Protests

The National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) has ordered students to commence street protests against the continued strike action by the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU).

The directive, issued on Friday by NANS president, Comrade Sunday Asefon told the students to carry their cooking pots, mattresses, and other items and occupy the streets of Abuja, the nation’s capital city.

The directive was contained in a letter titled, ‘Urgent Notice Of Immediate Commencement Of Mobilisation,’ dated March 25, 2022, and addressed to the zonal coordinators of the union.

It will be recalled that ASUU under the leadership of Professor Emmanuel Osodeke had declared a one-month warning strike on February 14, 2022, over what it termed the failure of the federal government to address its demands and agreements.

The strike was further extended by two months on March 14 when the initial warning strike was supposed to end.

ASUU Speaks On Demanding N1tr From Nigerian Govt To End Strike

The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has denied requesting a fresh N1tr from the federal government as a condition to end its ongoing strike action.
The report of the huge cash demand was denied on Sunday by the National Chairman of ASUU, Professor Emmanuel Osodeke.

Societygazette reports that Osodeke made the denial in reaction to reports that the academic union had laid fresh monetary demand of N1tr to end the ongoing strike action by University lecturers which commenced on 14th February 2022.

While acknowledging that little progress has been made in negotiations with the federal government, the ASUU president denied making such monetary requests.

“It’s not correct”.

“The outcome of that meeting was reported. Nobody mentioned N1 trillion. We don’t respond to all these rumours. What we’re demanding is coming after the government agreed to spend N1.3 trillion in 2009,” the ASUU president was quoted by The Cable to have said.

“It was to be released N200 billion per year for five or six years. They didn’t do that which is what we’re asking for,” he added.

Earlier, Naija News had reported that the President Muhammadu Buhari-led government has been accused by the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) of showing levity in its negotiation with its members.

The President of ASUU, Emmanuel Osodeke noted that ending the industrial action is dependent on the readiness of the Federal Government

He stated that the strike will end if the Federal Government take the issue with importance and do the needful.

Osodeke further stated that the last meeting between its members and the federal government was not productive because the government team acted as if it did not know the issues at stake.