Key Takeaways
- Ogun State PDP accuses state government of politicising education sector
- Alleged directive requires public school teachers to attend meeting with APC governorship candidate
- PDP condemns move as abuse of power and weaponisation of civil service
The Ogun State Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship candidate\'s media office has accused the state government of allegedly politicising the education sector. This follows a directive purportedly requiring public school teachers and head teachers to attend a meeting with the All Progressives Congress (APC) governorship candidate, Senator Solomon Adeola, also known as Yayi.
A statement issued by the Media Aide to the PDP governorship candidate, Afolabi Orekoya, described the alleged directive as an abuse of power and called for an immediate end to what it termed the use of public institutions for partisan political purposes. According to the statement, a memo circulating within the Ogun State public school system allegedly directed head teachers and teachers in both primary and secondary schools to attend a meeting scheduled for August 3, 2026, at the Alake Pavilion in Abeokuta.
The meeting was organised under the guise of statutory and administrative duties, but the PDP campaign office argued that there was absolutely no statutory or administrative justification for the Ogun State Teaching Service Commission (TESCOM) and the Ogun State Universal Basic Education Board (SUBEB) to compel teachers to leave their official responsibilities for what it described as a political meeting.
Reaction from TESCOM Chairman
Reacting to the allegation, the Chairman of TESCOM, Biodun Sanyaolu, denied issuing any directive compelling teachers to attend the meeting. Sanyaolu said neither TESCOM nor SUBEB instructed teachers to participate, insisting that the meeting was requested by the teachers’ unions. The Chairman stated that the APC governorship candidate, Yayi, has done much for the unions in the last four years, and they were the ones who requested to have an interactive session with him.
The PDP campaign office, however, maintains that the state’s education sector and civil service should remain politically neutral, stressing that teachers should not be drawn into partisan activities. The opposition further maintained that coercing civil servants into attending political gatherings under the threat of administrative duty is illegal, unethical, and highly oppressive.
Why This Matters
The alleged politicisation of the education sector in Ogun State has significant implications for the integrity of public institutions and the neutrality of the civil service. The PDP’s accusations highlight the need for the state government to ensure that public institutions remain free from partisan politics, and that teachers and civil servants are not coerced into attending political gatherings, thereby undermining their professional responsibilities and the trust of the public.