Senate mulls 6-month jail term for parents of out-of-school children

The lawmaker representing Kaduna Central in the Senate, Usman Lawal Adamu, said Wednesday that the Senate was considering an amendment to the 1999 constitution that would include a six-month jail term for parents who refuse to enrol their children in school.

He spoke with newsmen after presenting a report of the Senate Committee on Education (Primary and Secondary) on the need to tackle the challenge of out-of-school children during plenary.

“We are proposing a six-month jail term for parents who refuse to send their children to school. We must come to terms with the fact that education is very key. It’s the solution to these criminalities that are happening,” Adamu, who chairs the committee, said.

Earlier, during a debate on the committee’s report, Senate President Godswill Akpabio said there are over 20 million out-of-school children in the country, describing them as potential bandits. 

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“20 million out-of-school children is a timebomb for any country. They are potential bandits; they are a major danger. So, this is a major issue. This is the cause of insecurity in the country,” Akpabio said.

The Deputy Senate President, Barau Jibrin, also said, “Out-of-school children are a serious problem. It is a kind of timebomb, and once it explodes, it will consume us, particularly the northern part of this country.”

In his contribution, Senator Simon Lalong (APC, Plateau South), asked President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to compel state governors to address the issue of out-of-school children in their states sequel to the huge funds being allocated to them. 

After an extensive debate on the issue, Senator Seriake Dickson (PDP, Bayelsa West), moved a motion for a national summit on the issue. The motion was seconded by the Deputy President of the Senate, Barau Jibrin (APC, Kano North).

Senate President Godswill Akpabio said the national summit would deliberate on the issue of out-of-school children to ensure the security of the country.

Akpabio said the summit would have various stakeholders including representatives of the federal, state and local governments, civil society organisations and many others in attendance. 

However, no date has been fixed for the proposed summit.

Allocate funds to faith-based schools, Onaiyekan tells FG 

Meanwhile, John Cardinal Onaiyekan, the Emeritus Catholic Archbishop of Abuja, has urged the federal government to allocate funds to faith-based schools to provide equal educational opportunities and address the increasing number of out-of-school children in Nigeria.

He made this appeal on Wednesday in Abuja at the 4th National Catholic Education Summit.

Cardinal Onaiyekan expressed concern over the inequitable funding that overlooks high-performing faith-based schools across the nation, asserting that parents should have the right to choose faith-based education without incurring financial penalties.

He acknowledged the constraints posed by corruption on available resources but emphasized that some funds still exist. 

“It is unjust to allocate funds exclusively to government schools while neglecting our Catholic institutions. This approach is not fair to our children. Every child deserves the government’s attention, regardless of their parents’ financial status,” he said.

Also, Episcopal Chairman of the CBCN Education Committee, Most Rev. Moses Chikwe, noted education’s role in shaping a more fraternal world, where young people learn to appreciate and love others regardless of background. He urged educators to practice what they teach, serving as authentic role models.

Chikwe highlighted key areas of focus, including human dignity and rights, fraternity and cooperation, technology and holistic ecology, peace and citizenship, and culture and religions and also supported Cardinal Onaiyekan’s appeal, advocating for an inclusive education policy, warning that that unequal education funding undermines national growth.

Earlier, Reverend Father Dominic Efimo, Secretary of Education for the Catholic Secretariat of Nigeria’s Education Committee, said the summit’s objectives, was responding to Pope Francis’ calls for a Global Compact on Education.

He said that the summit aims to unite Catholic education stakeholders, address challenges, reinject morals, explore technological innovations, and promote unity and Catholic identity.