Students in state-owned tertiary institutions in Imo state have made a passionate appeal to the Imo State Governor, Rochas Okorocha, not to end the ongoing free education in the state.

According to them, it has gone a long way in alleviating the sufferings of indigent families who could not afford to pay tuition for their children in school.

The students made this appeal at the Imo Trade and Investment Centre in Owerri, the state capital, during the re-validation and identification exercise organised by the state government, to ascertain the number of Imo indigenes benefitting from the state free education policy as well as ensure that the beneficiaries are of Imo extraction.

Since the inception of the Okorocha-led administration in 2011, education from primary to secondary has been made free for students in state owned schools.

In 2013, the state government also extended the free education to state owned tertiary institutions and testimonies from beneficiaries have highlighted its importance.

However, few weeks ago, the state government directed students in all the state owned tertiary institutions to obtain a form aimed at re-validating and identifying all the students enjoying the free education.

The students who are mainly from Imo State University, Imo State Polytechnic, Imo State College of Education, and the Imo State School of Nursing, have appealed to the government not to put an end to the free education policy, maintaining that the importance of the free education to families cannot be overemphasized.

A microbiology student Precious Eze, giving her opinion said: “Since I got admission to Imo State University (IMSU), I haven’t paid a dime as school fees, the Governor is really trying for us, please he shouldn’t stop this free education because if he does, it will affect us a lot, especially some of us whose parents have meager means of income”

Another 400 level economics student from IMSU, Emeka Duru, said: “My parents won’t find it funny if the free education ends now, I have enjoyed it since I entered school since my 100 level now am in 400 level, how will I cope.

“I really want to commend the governor for this free education and urge him not to stop it, and I think this re-validation form is a welcome development.”

Meanwhile, the state government has allayed the fears of the students, assuring them of the continuity of the free education.

He maintained that it has come to stay and that the re-validation exercise is mainly to build a data base and ascertain the originality of students benefiting from the programme.

Having seen the authenticity in the free education policy of the Imo state government, hopefully, subsequent governments will concretise the policy for continuity. (Channels TV)

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