Education Ministers disagree over appointments of agency heads.

 

A subtle disagreement may be brewing between the Minister of Education, Mallam Adamu Adamu and the Minister of State for Education, Prof. Anthony Anwukah, over the recent appointments of 17 new heads of parastatals under the ministry.

It was learnt yesterday that the Minister of State was not consulted before some of the new chief executive officers to oversee various parastatals and agencies under the ministry were appointed.

Anwukah was said to have stayed away from the kick-off ceremony of the development training for basic education teachers and managers yesterday in Abuja in protest of the action by his colleague. Anwukah's State governor, Rochas Okorocha, was present.


But an aide to the Minister of State, dismissed the stories, insisting that Anwukah was absent at the event to attend to top management of Nigerian Breweries who were on a courtesy call to brief him on events lined up for this year's Maltina Teachers of the Year Initiative. He said the minister had to stay back in his office to receive the sofficials because the visit was scheduled long ago.

The Minister of State is statutorily responsible for the Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC), National Teachers Institute (NTI), National Mass and Adult Literacy Commission (NMEC), and Nigerian Educational Research and Development Council (NERDC), National Examination Council (NECO), among others.Sources said yesterday that Anwukah was not comfortable that the heads of these agencies were appointed without his comprehensive input.