Oyo Assembly mulls ban on mobile phones in schools

By Adejayan Gbenga

The Oyo State House of Assembly on Tuesday directed its Standing Committee on Education to engage all relevant stakeholders in a dialogue and work out the modalities for curbing the use of mobile phones by students in both private and public secondary schools across the state.

Stakeholders to be engaged include the Ministry of Education, the Agency for Mass Mobilisation, the Ministry of Information, among others.

The directive was issued after deliberations on a motion presented by the member representing Akinyele I State Constituency, Hon. Olalekan Abiola.

In the motion, Abiola appealed to the state government to enforce a ban on the use of personal mobile phones by students in all public and private secondary schools across the state, particularly during school hours.

He emphasized the need to ban the use of mobile phones among secondary school students during school hours in order to improve discipline and enhance academic performance.

However, he suggested that school authorities should establish official communication channels to allow parents to reach their children in case of emergencies without disrupting learning activities.