Okpebholo returns missionary schools to churches after decades

Okpebholo returns missionary schools to churches after decades

Edo State Governor, Monday Okpebholo, has approved the return of schools to missionary organisations in the state.

According to a statement by his Chief Press Secretary, Fred Itua, the decision was reached following a meeting between the governor and the Bishop of the Catholic Diocese of Auchi, Gabriel Dunia, at the Government House, Benin City, on Monday.

The statement noted that Okpebholo would establish a committee to identify the specific schools that would be handed over.

“Among the schools expected to be affected by this policy are prominent institutions such as Our Lady of Fatima College, Auchi; St Angela’s Grammar School, Uzairue; St John Grammar School, Fugar; St Peter’s Grammar School, Agenebode; St James’s Grammar School, Afuze; St Joseph College, Otuo; St Mary Grammar School, Eme-Ora; and St Aloysius Gonzaga Grammar School, Ososo.

“The move comes decades after the civil government took over Catholic primary and secondary schools in the 1970s,” it noted.

Bishop Dunia revealed that despite persistent appeals to previous administrations, the government had not positively responded to the church’s requests for the return of their institutions until now.

The cleric underscored the strategic importance of these educational institutions to the Catholic mission, emphasising their role not only in the intellectual formation of children but also in fostering “ideal moral character, which constitutes the bedrock of good society.”