By Yunusa Isa, Gombe
The Gombe State office of the Adolescent Girls Initiative for Learning and Empowerment (AGILE) Project has warned principals, teachers and leaders of School Based Management Committees (SBMCs) against tempering with the girl’s scholarship funds meant to encourage girl child education in the state.
Speaking to newsmen over the recent reports of extortion by some principals in some local government areas of the state, the State Coordinator of the AGILE Project, Dr Amina Haruna Abdul, expressed dismay over the development which she described unacceptable.
“This initiative was designed to remove financial barriers and ensure that every deserving girl has the opportunity to stay in school, learn, and fulfil her potential. It is therefore very sad that some school principals were found to be fraudulently collecting money from scholarship beneficiaries”.
Dr Amina said the project has already taken active measures to check the excesses of the principals.
“Following reports from some beneficiaries, our monitoring and investigation teams conducted a thorough review. Evidence confirmed that a number of principals violated the guidelines of the programme by soliciting or collecting money from beneficiaries. These actions are not only a betrayal of public trust, but a direct attack on the noble initiative of His Excellency, Muhammadu Inuwa Yahaya to uplift girls and transform lives through the AGILE Project among other laudable programs”.
The coordinator assured that the erring principals are identified compelled to refund the money they collected to the beneficiaries, while noting that appropriate sanctions shall be meted against those found wanting.
While encouraging parents, students and community members to report any irregularity via the project’s dedicated hotlines, the AGILE coordinator said to avert future occurrence, a strong monitoring and reporting system is being deployed.
Dr Amina Haruna reiterated that the girl’s scholarship is totally free, and AGILE will never ask for any money in exchange, stressing that no principal, teacher or community leader is allowed to collect money from the scholarship beneficiaries.
She appealed to people of the state to freely report any wrong doing via the dedicated hotlines: 09076949555; 07067026288; 08062304975 and 08023837106.