Benue State Governor Hyacinth Alia has declared free education from Basic One to Nine in all government public schools in the state.

The governor stated this at the maiden edition of the Benue Basic Education Summit at the College of Health Sciences, Moses Orshio Adasu University, Makurdi yesterday.

He said his administration, which had recruited over 9,700 teachers, consistently pays salaries, implements the harmonised retirement age for teachers and was determined to ensure that no child of school age is left out of school.

He emphasised that his decision to make Basic One to Nine free was to make provision for the poor and vulnerable in society and prepare a solid foundation for the leaders of tomorrow.

Technical adviser to the governor on media, publicity and strategic communication, Chief Solomon Iorpev in a statement yesterday said Alia called on parents, traditional and religious leaders and other stakeholders to help his administration in enforcing the free and compulsory basic education.

Alia added that the future of the state depended on the young ones and it behoved on leaders to prepare them for it.

In addition, the governor launched the “Building Rights to Access and Compulsory Education for Un-enrolled Pupils (BRACE-UP)”, a strategy to ensure that every Benue child is enrolled, retained and empowered through quality basic education.

The governor said BRACE-UP would mobilise community leaders, parents and teachers to identify out-of-school children, create flexible learning pathways and track each learner’s progress from enrollment to completion.

He promised that Benue State, under his watch, would continue to ensure catalytic funding as well as policy regulations that mirror the UBE Act and prioritize compulsory, free basic education for all Benue children.

In a related development, the national leadership of the Nigerian Union of Teachers (NUT) led by Comrade Audu Titus Amba, presented to the governor, a golden award for education and teacher friendliness.

The recognition, according to the union, validates the collective efforts of the Alia-led administration in revitalising basic education across Benue State.

Responding, Governor Alia promised to pay a month’s arrears to retired teachers and assured them of his determination to work tirelessly towards their welfare, saying, “You have taught me and I won’t cheat you.”