Osun school poison: FG to establish monitoring, evaluation unit

Following the reported poisoning of 18 pupils on December 12, 2023, in Osun State, the federal government has resolved to establish a monitoring and evaluation unit to ensure the safety of school pupils.

The Senior Special Assistant to the President on School Feeding, Dr Yetunde Adeniji, disclosed this on Thursday when she visited the state to ascertain the true position of things regarding the reported case of food poisoning in the state.

Recall that 18 pupils of St James RCM Primary School in Owo-ope, a community in Osogbo, the Osun State capital, had become sick and were taken to hospital after eating a meal provided by the state government under its school feeding programme.

A statement by Olumobi John Adewale from her Media Office on Thursday in Abuja said Dr Adeniji cautioned against sharp practices in schools during the visit, stressing that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu was committed to scchool feeding programmes as part of his 8-point agenda.

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She said the federal government under her office would be establishing a monitoring and evaluation unit to ensure continued commitment to the safety and success of school feeding programmes across the country, adding that in the coming days, her office would ensure government policies are strictly adhered to across the federation to standardise school feeding programmes in the country.

 She said the Tinubu-led government will not leave any state unattended to, with plans to feed 10 million children across the country.

“Schools must remain vigilant against sharp practices as relates to the quality and hygiene of the meals served. The meals served in schools must be of very high standards,” she added.

Earlier, the Osun State governor, Ademola Adeleke, who was represented by the deputy governor, Prince Kola Adewusi, said, “The incident on Monday, December 12, 2023, was a clear case of misinformation. Unfortunately, such occurrences are not uncommon in governance at any level.”