Osun State Governor, Ademola Adeleke has ordered the management of the state polytechnic, Iree, to reverse the fee payable by students.
Recall that the school authority had increased its fees for the 2022/23 academic session from N67,850 to N112,850 for science students and N57,300 to N97,300 for others.
However, in a memo to the school management by the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Education, Adelani A. Aderinola, dated December 15, the governor directed the school management to suspend the new fee regime.
“Further to your letter Reference Number OSPOL/BUR/101/VII/239 dated 13th December 2022 on Notification of Approved Fees for 2022/2023 Academic Session, the management of the institution should suspend the implementation of the new school fees regime because of the recent change in leadership of the state,” the memo titled, Re: Notification of Approved Fees for 2022/2023 Academic Session in Osun State Polytechnic Iree, reads.
Meanwhile, the Osun Governor has put the total debt portfolio of the State at N407.32 billion.
Adeleke, who spoke at the monthly meeting of Osun State Traditional Rulers, held in Osogbo on Thursday, December 15, explained that the figure was arrived at, after various sums of money in the 8 credit facilities inherited were added to arrears of salaries and pension owed workers and retirees by the previous administration.
The governor said his administration inherited 8 outstanding loan facilities, repayable between the period of 16 months to 28 years, totalling N331.32 billion, while the administration also had N76 billion debt of arrears of salaries and pensions owed by the Gboyega Oyetola-led administration.