Stephen Odey, Cross River State Education Commissioner, has warned secondary school principals in the state, to stick to the collection of government approved school fees from students to avoid extreme punitive measures being meted out on them for extortion.
Odey gave the warning in Calabar, when he summoned to his office, the principals of Government Secondary School, State Housing, Calabar, Government Secondary School, Uwanse, Calabar, as well as Government Secondary School Barracks Road, Calabar, boldy called out by callers on a phone-in radio programme, recently broadcast in Calabar, as principals perpetrating illegal school fees collection.
“Under my watch only the right thing will be done”, Odey insisted before, a session with the invited principals and directors in the ministry to verify the claims made by callers on radio. It was however discovered, after close scrutiny, that the principals have so far collected fees and levies as approved by the ministry.
Parents and the general public, he thereafter advised, should demand for and collect, from the CRS Ministry of Education, the state approved fee and levies schedule before making any payments to avoid the perpetuation of situations like this that could affect parent/principal relationship.
Recall that from several parts of the state, Odey has had cause to personally intervene as the hue and cry concerning arbitrary fees and levies collected by some principals became louder. In some cases reported, some school principals in the state have reportedly made raw food demands to students, tagging such an illegal collection as “handwork”.