The Registrar/Chief Executive, Teacher Registration Council of Nigeria (TRCN), Prof. Josiah Ajiboye, has urged school owners to always ensure the recruitment of qualified, registered and licensed teachers.
Ajiboye, represented by the Deputy Director of the council, Mr. Olabode Olaniran gave the advice at the 8th Annual School Needs Exhibition in on in Abuja.
According to him, teachers who are not registered under TRCN and are employed are liable to a fine or jail.
He noted that large numbers of unqualified, unregistered, and unlicensed persons were recruited to teach in most private schools across the country.
This practice, he said, was unlawful and counterproductive and can cause devastating effects on the education system and indicate serious danger to our society.
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“Well trained teachers constitute veritable tools in the sustainable National Development in all endeavours of life and most especially in the education sector.
“The TRCN act 31 of 1993 section 17 (2) affirms that it is a crime for any individual to teach, use the identity of a teacher or earn the reward of a teacher without being registered and licensed by the council.
“And such a person, on conviction is liable to a fine or jail term or both. The act further stipulates that the employer of such a person will face the same penalty”, he said.
He, however, encouraged all parents to ensure that their wards get proper education from the right sources and through the proper channel.
Also, the convener of the event, Mrs. Emem Opashi stressed the need for the government to partner with the private sector to improve education in the country.
According to her, there is a very wide gap between the private and public schools.
“Few states of the federation have put in efforts to improve on education.
“The solution to this was not to build more private schools, but the major solution was for the government to partner with the private sector.
“Public sector must also know that education is not cheap, it is an investment and it is never going to be cheap. If you want quality, you must invest.
“It is time we run the public schools with the business mindset, because in any private sector, you know exactly what you are spending so that they know the value.
“You must know exactly what it cost to raise one Nigerian child. It is not about the public child or the private child. So, we must invest in the private sector,’’ she said.
She also appreciated the government for doing its best in the grassroots, adding that more qualified people should be involved in the education sector for effective service delivery.
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