The Executive Secretary, National Senior Secondary Education Commission (NSSEC), Dr Iyela Ajayi, has called on Akwa Ibom State to change the nomenclature of State Secondary Education Board (SSEB) to State Senior Secondary Education Board (SSSEB).
This is contained in a statement made available to newsmen by the commission’s Head of Public Relations and Protocol, Fatima Bappare, in Abuja on Friday. Bappare said Ajayi made the demand while speaking with the Deputy Governor of Akwa Ibom State, Dr Akon Eyakenyi, during a courtesy call.
He explained that Section 21, sub-section 2 of the NSSEC Act 2003, provided for states to comply by establishing SSEBs. He said the Act also directed states to contribute at least 5% as the counterpart funding to qualify for the NSSEC intervention fund.
Ajayi further stressed the need for state SSEBs to be represented on the national body with the composition and functions as provided in the Act.
This, he said, would assist in fast tracking legislative processes as well as drafting and passage of the Executive Bill by the State Houses of Assembly, uniformity of all SSSEB Laws, and elimination of any contradicting provision that would exclude states from benefiting from the NSSEC fund.
“Establishment of the state Senior Secondary Education Boards will also give room for smooth implementation of NSSEC functions and mandate in all states,” he said.
Ajayi also appealed to the Akwa Ibom State government to provide a furnished office for use as the commission’s provisional office, as well as land in Uyo for the commission to erect its South-South zonal office. Responding, the Deputy Governor, Eyakenyi, expressed the state government’s willingness to collaborate with the commission.
She further disclosed that land had already been earmarked for the SSSEB in Uyo, while assuring the commission that Akwa Ibom State was adequately prepared to draft and pass the Executive Bill while the State House of Assembly was also ready for its speedy passage.