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Abia State’s Ministry of Basic and Secondary Education warned Friday that it will sanction any public or private school found collecting graduation levies from pupils and students outside the two terminal classes permitted under state policy.
Commissioner for Basic and Secondary Education Elder Goodluck Ubochi issued the warning through a statement released by the ministry’s Public Relations Officer, Duru Marvellous, reiterating an existing state ban on graduation fees in all classes except Primary 6 and Senior Secondary School 3.
“The Abia State Government, through the Ministry of Basic and Secondary Education, wishes to remind the general public that graduation ceremonies are recognized only for Primary 6 and Senior Secondary School 3 (SS3), being the terminal classes in the Basic and Senior Secondary Education cycles,” Ubochi said, adding that any graduation ceremony organized for non-terminal classes that attracts compulsory payment “is not approved and must cease forthwith.”
The ministry said it had received reports that some public and private schools across the state continue to impose unauthorized graduation fees on pupils and students in non-terminal classes, prompting Friday’s directive. The government stated plainly that no public or private school shall collect graduation levies or fees from pupils or students in any class other than Primary 6 and SS3.
Ubochi directed the Ministry of Basic and Secondary Education to begin immediate monitoring and enforcement of the policy across schools statewide, warning that any institution found in violation would face sanctions under the law. He did not specify what form those sanctions would take. The commissioner asked stakeholders, including parents, guardians, and school proprietors, to report violations to the ministry for investigation, and advised strict compliance going forward.
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Friday’s warning is not a standalone policy but the latest enforcement push behind a restriction Abia first introduced roughly a year earlier. The state’s Executive Council, under Commissioner for Information Prince Okey Kanu, announced in September 2025 that graduation ceremonies would be restricted to Primary 6 and SS3 following consultations with education stakeholders. Ubochi said at the time that younger pupils, including those in nursery classes, did not need ceremonies that compelled parents to spend heavily, and the restriction was framed explicitly as a measure to ease the financial burden on families.
That restriction sat within a broader set of cost-cutting reforms Governor Alex Otti’s administration rolled out around the same period. The state abolished the compulsory bundling of textbooks with workbooks, a practice that had forced families to repurchase materials each year rather than pass textbooks down to younger siblings. Otti had separately announced, in a New Year address, a ban on all forms of payment in public primary and secondary schools, including Parent-Teacher Association levies, paired with a new imprest account system giving head teachers and principals fixed monthly allocations to run their schools without relying on unauthorized fees. “There is therefore no excuse to extort or deny any child the opportunities that come with learning and enlightenment,” Otti said at the time, warning that the government would enforce the policy strictly.
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Abia is not alone in restricting graduation ceremonies to terminal classes. Nigerian education outlets have listed the state alongside Edo, Ondo, Ekiti, Kaduna, Niger, and Ebonyi as states that have taken steps to curb elaborate graduation events, with Benue, Osun, and Imo also introducing regulatory measures. Delta State went further this month, issuing guidelines restricting graduation events to Primary 6 and SS3 while separately banning compulsory aso-ebi purchases, disc jockeys, alcohol, and after-parties at school ceremonies, with violating schools risking event cancellation or suspension from certificate examinations for up to five years. Ogun State’s education officials have likewise reiterated warnings against graduation-linked charges that place unnecessary financial burdens on parents.
The statement did not disclose how many Abia schools have been flagged for the practice, nor whether any enforcement action has already been taken against specific institutions. It also did not specify the monetary penalty schools would face if found in violation, leaving the practical consequences of non-compliance undefined pending the ministry’s enforcement rollout.
For families, the immediate effect of the directive is a formal basis to refuse payment demands tied to non-terminal class ceremonies and to escalate complaints directly to the ministry. Whether schools that have historically run these ceremonies as a revenue stream will comply without further enforcement action remains untested, and the ministry gave no timeline for when monitoring would begin or when compliance would be assessed.
