Ogun and Osun declare Monday as public holiday for Teachers’ Day celebration

The governments of Ogun and Osun States have declared Monday, October 7, 2024, as a public holiday for the Teachers’ Day celebration.

In honour of this year’s Teachers’ Day, schools in the two states will resume academic activities on Tuesday, 8th October 2024.

Ogun Governor, Dapo Abiodun announced the public holiday on Saturday during the Teachers’ Day celebration held at the Cultural Centre, Kuto, Abeokuta, the state capital.

On Sunday, the Ogun State chapter of the National Association of Proprietors of Private Schools issued a notice to its members, reminding them of the holiday declared by the governor.

According to Punch, the copy of message shared on school platforms read, “This is to inform you that the Ogun State Government has declared Monday, October 7, 2024, as teachers’ holiday.

“In line with this directive, all schools are expected to observe the holiday

“Therefore, academic activities are suspended tomorrow. School resumes on Tuesday, October 8, 2024, as previously planned.”

Similarly, Osun State Governor, Senator Ademola Adeleke, has declared Monday, October 7, 2024, as a work-free day for all teachers in both public and private schools throughout the state.

A press statement issued by the Commissioner for Information and Public Enlightenment, Oluomo Kolapo Alimi, indicates that the holiday aims to recognise the invaluable contributions of teachers to the growth of the education sector, not only in Osun and Nigeria but also worldwide.

The Governor’s message on the occasion of this year’s World Teachers’ Day, as issued to the press by Oluomo Alimi, reads in part: “I, Senator Ademola Jackson Nurudeen Adeleke, the Executive Governor of Osun State, heartily congratulate all teachers throughout the world, particularly those in my dear state of Osun, on the annual occasion of World Teachers’ Day, celebrated every 5th of October.

“While it gladdens my heart and that of my administration to declare tomorrow as a public holiday throughout Osun State, I admonish all teachers to use this one-day public holiday to reflect on the past, present, and future development of the state in the education sector.

“I would like to take this opportunity, for the umpteenth time, to assure you that my administration will continue to do everything morally and officially possible to put smiles on your faces and ensure you feel happy and fulfilled as purveyors of knowledge in this dear state of ours, Osun.

“Please accept my best wishes and congratulations on the occasion of World Teachers’ Day. Happy celebrations!” concluded Governor Adeleke’s message to the teachers of both public and private schools in Osun State.

Meanwhile, the Ogun governor during the event on Saturday approved the construction of 12 blocks of 900 smart classrooms across four schools, with one school selected from each zone in the state.

The schools benefiting from this initiative are Abeokuta Grammar School, Idi-Aba, Abeokuta; Ijebu-Ode Grammar School, Ijebu-Ode; Remo Secondary School, Sagamu; and Yewa College, Ilaro.

Governor Abiodun, while highlighting his administration’s achievements in the education sector, mentioned the introduction of the Ogun Digitalised Multimedia Lesson Plan which will provide teachers with the tools necessary to deliver standardised, digital lesson plans.

Also, he revealed that his administration has constructed a Central Education Management Information System for efficient data collection, analysis, and reporting.

Other notable accomplishments of his administration according to him include the approval of the Ogun State Education Intervention Fund, the successful conduct of the Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE) using Optical Mark Reader (OMR) sheets, and the installation of ICT facilities in preparation for launching the Nigeria Learning Passport for digital educational content.

The governor also announced that efforts are underway to complete abandoned schools and projects from 2018 and 2019.

He said, “You recall that when I assumed office, this state had not accessed the 2014, 2015, 2016, and 2017 funds.

Shortly after I assumed office, we paid the counterpart funding for those four years, and we accessed the funding. The current funding we are implementing is for 2018 and 2019. What I noticed is that most of the contracts were abandoned because of inflation; the pricing was not realistic. That was my number one observation.

“My second observation was that despite all these interventions, every now and then, you would see an Ogun State school in the news. You would see Ogun State learners sitting on 9-inch blocks and learning in schools without roofs, despite the fact that we have accessed UBEC or SUBEB funding.

“I realised that something had to be wrong, and what was that? I realised that the schools that were being built were not the worst of the worst schools.

“We put a hold on the programme, and I set up a task force headed by the Head of Service, and I mandated them to go around the nooks and crannies of the state and identify the worst of the worst schools so that we are no longer embarrassed.

“I am pleased to announce to you that the new work plan for UBEC that reflects our peculiarities has now been approved. So, two things we will be achieving: all the abandoned schools and projects from the 2018 and 2019 plans will now have a methodology for rewarding and completing them, and the 2020 work plan will now reflect the worst of the worst schools.”phs