The Ondo State Government has banned cash payments in public schools as part of efforts to curb alleged extortion and unauthorised fees imposed on pupils and students.
The Commissioner for Education, Science and Technology, Prof. Igbekele Ajibefun, announced the policy during a meeting with executives of the Association of Bursars of Secondary Schools in Akure.
Ajibefun said the government had introduced a digital payment gateway through which all financial transactions in public schools would be processed and properly documented.
“To this end, we have put heads together to come up with a payment gateway and from now on, every payment will have to pass through the gateway, and we have placed a ban on cash payments,” he said.
According to the commissioner, the new system is designed to promote transparency and prevent school authorities from exploiting parents and students through illegal or unauthorised fees and levies.
He said the digital payment platform would become operational from the new academic session and warned principals and other school officials against collecting money directly from parents or students.
“From the next session, we will not give room for anyone to deny any collection of illegal fees,” Ajibefun added.
The commissioner explained that the decision followed complaints received from parents during the last academic session over alleged unauthorised collections in some public schools.
He said he personally visited several schools to investigate the complaints and discovered that some unauthorised collections were indeed taking place.
The findings, according to him, prompted the ministry to collaborate with relevant stakeholders and a technical team to develop a system that would make all school financial transactions traceable.
Ajibefun said the initiative had been approved by Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa, adding that funds paid through the platform would be remitted directly to the appropriate school accounts.
He said the system would help address irregularities in the management of finances in public schools.
The Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology, Dr Akindele Ige, urged school bursars to work closely with other stakeholders to understand and effectively implement the new payment system.
Meanwhile, the Chairman of the Association of Bursars of Secondary Schools, Fisayo Fapounda, described the initiative as a positive development that would improve transparency in school financial management.
He urged the company responsible for operating the payment gateway to engage with bursars and provide adequate training to ensure smooth implementation and prevent misinformation about the new system.
