FG delegation visits Osun over school food poisoning
A delegation of the Federal Government led by Senior Special Assistant to the President on School Feeding, Yetunde Adeniji, has paid a scheduled visit to Osun State following the food poisoning incident that involved 18 pupils of James Primary School in Osogbo.
In a statement released on Thursday by her media team, Adeniji said the visit was a fact-finding one to get abreast with updates on the purported food poisoning on December 12 under the state government’s Home Grown School Feeding programme.
The visit comes barely one week after the state government commenced a probe into the circumstances surrounding the mid-day meal served to the pupils under the Osun free school feeding programme.
Governor Ademola Adeleke had immediately directed the stoppage of food cooking at the affected school pending the outcome of the investigations while the victims were treated and discharged after receiving treatment from the hospital.
The FG delegation, which was received by Adeleke and his deputy, Prince Kola Adewusi, stated that it discovered during their visit to the affected school that the purported incident was largely misrepresented.
While reiterating President Bola Tinubu’s commitment to the well-being of children in public schools, the presidential aide emphasised that Tinubu remained committed to school feeding programmes as part of his eight-point agenda and would not leave any state unattended to in line with his vision to feed 10 million children across the country.
Adeniji also warned, “The meals served in schools must be of very high standards. We urge schools to remain vigilant against sharp practices as they relate to the quality and hygiene of the meals served.
“The FG will be establishing a monitoring and evaluation unit to ensure continued commitment to the safety and success of school feeding programmes across the country. In the coming days, our office would ensure government policies are strictly adhered to across the federation to standardise school feeding programs in Nigeria, amongst other sweeping reforms.”
