During the inauguration of his
government on May 29, 2011, Governor
Rochas Okorocha hinted Imo indigenes of
his plans to embark on free education
policy in the state. Although he promised
to run it from primary to University level;
at the initial stage, it was apparent that
the government had not actually made up
its mind on the coloration of the policy.
Lack of policy design and direction
inherent in the plan was instantly
recognizable.

The government was at that stage unsure
whether it wanted full blown free
education that involved all Imo indigenes
in all tertiary institutions in the country or
only those schooling in the higher
institutions in the state. The government
was also at a loss whether the free
education meant taking full responsibility
of tuition fees of students in the higher
institutions and other educational tools or
simply providing part payment of the
tuition fees.

The above realization thus brought to
fore the ad hoc and indeterminate nature
of the free education policy and several
other policies of Governor Okorocha’s
Administration namely, lacking in legal
and legislative frameworks. This
development accordingly has spawned
deceit, fraud and faulty implementation of
the exercise and unprecedented
deterioration of standard of education in
the state. These observations have been
captured in graphic details in the later
part of this article.

However, when Okorocha was ready to
commence the implementation of the so-
called free education he started by jerking
up the school fees paid by students in Imo
State University from N55,000 to
N120,000, representing a whopping 110
percent increase. Not a few Imolites hence
wrote him off on this deceitful start. He
followed the trickery up by issuing a
cheque of N100, 000 to the students in
the name of free education and
compelling them to pay a complementary
sum of N20, 000 including the cheque
into a designated account that does not
belong to the University. This turned out
to be fraud number one.


The over deceptions here are manifold.
Why the large scale increase in school fees
at a point the purported free education
was to commence? Why issuing students
cheque when the exercise can be
conducted on a blank sheet? Why asking
students to make a part payment when
the exercise is named free education?
Who owns the account the cheque and
the part payment are deposited in to?
Okorocha’s government has since clarified
that the scope of the so-called free
education ranges with higher institutions
owned by the state.

The implication is
that only students in Imo State University
and Imo State Polytechnic Umuagwo
representing less than 10 percent have
the legitimacy to benefiting from the
exercise. This is indicative of one of the
major flaws of the exercise. What is then
the fate of our students in other higher
institutions outside Imo state?

As a response to this façade, Imo
indigenes attending higher institutions
that are not owned by the state have on
a number of times taken to the streets to
protest the exercise branding it
exclusionist and unjust. The students
have rather opted for bursary allowance
that would have the propensity to touch
larger percentage of Imo students’
population. And they are right; for equity,
fairness and enhanced results
Given the jaundiced manner the exercise
is being implemented it has impacted too
negatively on the state’s overall
educational system, plummeting the
standard of scholarship abysmally at
higher and lower education levels. Many
instances suffice here.

Take Imo state University as a case study.
Prior to the introduction of the so-called
free education, verifiable record shows
that the University ranked the tenth best
University in Nigeria and the best State
University in the country. Virtually all the
courses offered by the University were
accredited by the National Universities
Commission (NUC).

Since the advent of the so-called free
education, the University’s remarkable
record has been obliterated and woeful.
Imo State University now ranks the
80 in the country, away from
10 position. Contrary to the first position
it ranked among state Universities pre-
Okorocha, currently it ranks among the
worst ten
Similarly, the courses offered in Imo state
University have also suffered abysmally.
Over 10 departments in Education Faculty
recently failed NUC test and were
accordingly de-accredited. Most
regrettable is the Law Faculty that used to
produce the best candidates in the
Nigeria Law School also lost NUC
accreditation, including Sociology
Department.

The trend is such that more departments
are likely going to lose their accreditation
if urgent intervention is not put in place
by the state government or a new
government voted in to correct the
anomalies. Then witness the anomaly.
Since the introduction of the so-called free
education, Imo State University’s
budgetary allocation has hardly covers
workers salary and over head costs. No
fund has ever been provided for
educational tools, facilities and equipment
and even to run the departments.
Students are thus forced to provide chalks
and a few other basic things for learning.


The result was when NUC came for
accreditation, many courses suffering
from the strains of dilapidated facilities
were shut down. But prior to Okorocha’s
jaded policy, the University authorities
used school fees paid by the students to
augment government’s subvention and
thus were able to keep the school afloat, a
development that made it to rank among
the best in the country

The secondary schools unfortunately are
even worse state. Three years of poor
facility funding and inadequate staffing of
schools have resulted in the plummeting
of the standard of education to its lowest
ebb. Imo state now records 46 percent
overall performances in external
examinations as against 70 to 80 percent
pre-Okorocha administration
Under Okorocha verifiable facts indicate
rather scandalously that the 548 schools
in the state boast of only 87 Mathematics
teachers, 130 English teachers, 92
Chemistry teachers and 113 Physics
instructors. Need we say more on why
standard of education has declined
shamefully?

Hon Emeka Ihedioha, the People’s
Democratic Party guber candidate in the
February, 28 general election has
promised on a number of times to correct
all anomalies of Okorocha’s administration
if elected. He has gone ahead to provide a
framework on how to ensure free
qualitative education in the state thereby
restoring lost glory and values in the
education system which is the mainstay of
the state. This indeed makes it politically
imperative for Imo people to give him a
genuine chance to forestall Okorocha
administration’s seeming disposition to
bury one of the surviving heritage of Imo-
EDUCATION.

Is this Correct?
If yes(which i doubt)
please promptly report him to jona
If no, try again later
Thanks for the info
Sai Buhari

darksuit:
Is this Correct?
If yes(which i doubt)
please promptly report him to jona
If no, try again later
Thanks for the info
Sai Buhari

lol, I aint here to sai anybody bro!!!!

@op u ve spoken well but I don't think d name u made mention of can help so situation because so far I don't see any meaningful project that ur man has contributed as an imolite who has been at d federal level.....d devil u know is better than the angle u don't know. vote wisely

realfacts:
@op u ve spoken well but I don't think d name u made mention of can help so situation because so far I don't see any meaningful project that ur man has contributed as an imolite who has been at d federal level.....d devil u know is better than the angle u don't know. vote wisely

you have spoken wisely as well, But when the devil that you know is beginning to be a pain in your A$$ then its definitely Time to Give the Angel you don't know a Try.

INEC CHAMPIONS LEAGUE FINAL
DATE: 28th March, 2015
TICKET: PVC
KICK OFF: 10:00AMc
VENUE: Estadio de polling boot
CAPACITY: 68 million
REFEREE: ATTAHIRU JEGA
CLUB: PDP FC Vs APC FC
DEFENDING CHAMPION: PDP FC
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[quote author=busky101 post=31884409]
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