By Godwin Ajom
The Cross River State House of Assembly Committee on Education, has opposed the breaking into factions of the National Association of Proprietors of Private Schools ( NAPPS ) in the state.
The committee made this known during NAPPS stakeholders’ engagement with the Cross River State House of Assembly Committee on Education at the Assembly’s mini-auditorium, state Assembly complex, Calabar.
The Committee said its priority is to ensure no child due for WAEC is deprived of the opportunity to sit for examination because of crises in the Proprietors of Private Schools Association.
The committee enjoins the state Ministry of Education to give proprietors of private schools the go ahead with registration of students due for WAEC without necessarily obtaining clearance from any of the NAPPS factions before being allowed to register their students.
The law makers disclosed that arrangements are in top gear to convene another stakeholders meeting within two weeks to brainstorm and ensure that all the factions are merged together as one indivisible entity.
“To the permanent Secretary, in the meantime do please liaise with the Ministry of Education and ensure that any private school coming to register for WAEC, allow them to register, because as it stands now, we are taking both factions of the Association to the surgical room. They are undergoing proper surgery.”
“Please allow everyone who comes to you for WAEC registration. Disregard this issue of NAPPS registration fee for now so that we don’t hurt ourselves because of NAPPS registration fee receipt and clearance,” the Committee led by Honorable Martins Achadu pleaded.
Also speaking, the House of Assembly committee on Education and member representing Ikom one State constituency in the Cross River State House of Assembly, Honorable Samuel Neji-Abang, called for calm and urged the warring factions to sheath their swords pending the outcome of the committee ‘s final report.
Meanwhile, factional leader of NAAPS in the state Godwin Okwu, chastised the immediate past Exco of the association for leading the association, “as if it were their private estate that isn’t accountable to members of the association.”
Okwu urged the state Ministry of Education not to allow any of the factions of NAPPS collect levies from proprietors of schools on the ministry’s behalf but advised the ministry to directly collect levies meant for the government by themselves during registration of students for the 2025 West African Examination Council WAEC.
But the factional leader of NAPPS in the state Pastor Abraham Osok who reacted to the issue in a telephone conversation stated that even though he has chosen to reserve his comment on certain issues, he remains in charge as NAPPS president in Cross River State.