President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has reiterated his commitment towards the implementation of the school feeding programme for 10 million pupils in the country.
The Senior Special Assistant to the President on School Feeding, Dr. Yetunde Adeniji made this known during her visit to Osun State to probe into alleged food poisoning of 18 pupils under O-MEALS Program.
She explained that the President’s resolve on the nourishment and wellbeing of children in public schools programme was in tandem with his eight renewed hope agenda of his administration.
Mrs Adeniji urged schools to remain vigilant against sharp practices regarding the quality and hygiene of the meals served pupils in public schools.
She emphasized that the meals served in schools must be of very high standards adding that her office would put in place a monitoring and evaluation unit to ensure continued commitment to the safety and success of school feeding programs across the country.
She assured that she would ensure government policies are strictly adhered to across the federation in order to standardize school feeding programs in Nigeria, amongst other sweeping reforms.
Yetunde was recieved by the entire O-MEALS program team, led by His Excellency Governor Ademola Adeleke, represented by Deputy Governor Prince Kola Adewusi.
The team discovered during their visit to St James RCM Primary School in Owo-ope, Osogbo, that the purported incident was largely misrepresented.
Deputy Governor Adewusi stated, “This incident on Monday, December 12th, 2023, was a clear case of Misinformation. Unfortunately, such occurrences are not uncommon in governance at any level.”
Hon. Grace Oluwaseyi Ayodele, the SA to the governor on Home Grown School Feeding, shared this perspective, highlighting the need to discern between genuine concerns and orchestrated misinformation.
O-MEALS State Coordinator, Mrs. Olufunke Adesigba, provided insights into the guidelines ensuring proper health measures for the school feeding program.
She emphasized that all cooks undergo routine checks for tuberculosis and relevant medical examinations to guarantee the well-being of the students.
Chief Medical Director, Teaching Hospital Osogbo Prof. Peter Babatude Olaitan who said 32 pupils were brough into the hospital with two busses and all these students was singing and dancing but we went ahead to carry out necessary medical test, our report shows 31 pupils were diagnosed with no health issues and returned immediately, one was diagnosed of malaria which proper medication was given and discharged the following day.
HM of the school, Olutola Rasheedat Adenike, affirmed that the case was simply disinformation and purportedly fabricated.
