The Abia State Government has given reasons it embarked on recovery of some schools handed over to missions and churches in the state.
THE SUN reports that administration of former Governor Theodore Orji had handed over the schools previously owned by missions back to them for anticipated effective running.
However, recently, Abia Government began moves to reverse such handover, citing various reasons.
In a statement, the Chief Press Secretary to the Governor, Ukoha Njoku Ukoha said during the administration of ex-Governor Orji when the schools were returned to missions, the policy permitting such return did not allow the missions to sale or lease part of the school or the whole to private individuals.
“During the administration of ex-governor T. A. Orji, the policy of returning public schools to the Missions and Churches was introduced. The Government handed back the schools and her spaces to willing Missions and Churches to manage as Mission Schools as it were.
“The Government did not sale the schools and her spaces to the Missions and Churches. There was no provision for the Missions and Churches to sale or lease any part of the lands belonging to the Schools in the terms and conditions of the handover.
“The initiative was specifically for the Missions to take over the Schools for the sole purpose of managing them more effectively and efficiently. It was a subtle admission of failure by the then administration.
“The resort by Missions and Churches to sale or lease the schools or any of her spaces handed over to them to run and manage as School is illegal and ab initio null and void. The Missions and Churches have no authority to sale or lease public property and spaces handed over to them to manage as educational institution.”
The statement specifically mentioned Wilcox Memorial Comprehensive Secondary School, Aba, which it said was handed over to a former Deputy Speaker of Abia State House of Assembly, and two time Deputy Governor in his private capacity.
Government said if a church is given back a public school to run and manage and they discover that they have no capacity to manage it, it was only proper and moral to return such school back to the Government than selling or leasing it out to private proprietors who convert it to market, plaza, hotel, warehouse, home or private school with exorbitant fees.
Government said since there was no provision in the terms and conditions of the handover that empowered any church or mission to sale or lease any part of public school handed-over to her, it will stop at nothing in recovering such schools.
