Benue govt uncovers over 4,000 illegal, substandard schools

Over 4,000 illegal and substandard schools have been uncovered by the Benue State Government, Kula Tersoo, the Chief Press Secretary to the governor of the state has said.

Tersoo said some of these schools littered all over various Local Government Areas of the state were not conducive for learning purposes.

Addressing journalists in Makurdi, Benue State’s capital city, Tersoo noted that the schools were also filled with unqualified teachers.

According to him, the state had recruited over 9,700 qualified teachers to work at different primary schools across Benue State.

He said the present administration led by Governor Hyacinth Alia is committed to the educational growth of every child in the state.

He also noted that examination fees for about 19,000 students who sat for the West African Examination Council, National Examination Council and  National Business and Technical Examinations Board in 2023/2024 have been cleared.

In addition, the backlog of salaries and other allowances for Moses Adasu University, formerly Benue State University have also been paid.

“For instance, the backlog of 38 months of earned allowance owed to the staff of the state university has been cleared.

“It will also interest you to know that the present administration has recruited 9,700 qualified primary school teachers to reposition our schools.

“Also, the government has identified 4,000 schools that are substandard and not good for learning and do not have qualified teaching personnel,” Tersoo said.