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EDO GOV APPROVES RETURN OF SCHOOLS TO MISSIONS
Edo State Governor, Monday Okpebholo, has approved the return of schools to missionary organizations in the state.
This landmark decision was announced following a meeting between the Governor and the Bishop of the Catholic Diocese of Auchi, Gabriel G. Dunia, today in Government House, Benin City, Edo State capital.
A press statement by Fred Itua, the Chief Press Secretary to the State Governor, which made the disclosure,said Governor Okpebholo was committed to establishing a committee to identify the specific schools that would be handed over.
He clarified that any of the affected schools currently undergoing renovation by the State Government would remain under its supervision until their completion.
Itua said the schools expected to be affected by the policy are prominent institutions such as Our Lady of Fatima College, Auchi; St. Angela’s Grammar School, Uzairue; St. John Grammar School, Fugar; St. Peter’s Grammar School, Agenebode; St. James’s Grammar School, Afuze; St. Joseph’s College, Otuo; St. Mary’s Grammar School, Eme-Ora, and St. Aloysius Gonzaga Grammar School, Ososo.
The move comes decades after the civil government forcefully took over Catholic mission primary and secondary schools in the 1970s.
Bishop Dunia revealed that despite persistent appeals to previous administrations, the state government had not positively responded to the Church’s requests for the return of their institutions until now.
Bishop Dunia underscored the strategic importance of the educational institutions to the Catholic mission, emphasizing their role not only in the intellectual formation of children but also in fostering “ideal moral character, which constitutes the bedrock of a good society.”
Itua added that the approval marked a significant step towards addressing long-standing grievances and potentially enhancing educational standards through faith-based initiatives in Edo State.
