Posted by Chinenye on Tue 16th Jun, 2026 - tori.ng
Schools across Kogi State are facing tough consequences as the government moves to enforce a controversial policy targeting graduation and sign out ceremonie
(Kogi State Governor, Ahmed Usman Ododo. Photo by Punch News)
The Kogi State Government has reaffirmed its ban on excessive graduation ceremonies in nursery, primary, and junior secondary schools, warning that defaulting schools risk being shut down.
The government also restated its prohibition on sign-out ceremonies for undergraduates after their final semester examinations across the state.
The Commissioner for Education, Wemi Jones, gave the warning on Monday during a stakeholders' sensitisation meeting on the 2025/2026 Kogi State Annual School Census, held at the Government House in Lokoja.
Jones explained that the policy, which took effect at the start of the current academic session, was introduced to ease the financial burden on parents.
He expressed worry that graduation parties have become common even for pupils merely advancing from nursery to primary one, stressing that the ban on such excessive celebrations in primary and secondary schools remains firmly in force across the state.
According to him, only students completing SSS 3 ahead of university admission are permitted a formal send-off, in the form of the traditional Speech and Prize-Giving Day, where dignitaries are invited to address students and deserving pupils are honoured with awards.
He noted that schools holding ceremonies for pupils transitioning from nursery to primary one, primary six to JSS one, or JSS three to SSS one are acting in violation of state policy.
The commissioner lamented the financial strain such ceremonies place on parents, especially with third term when graduations are typically held now underway, and urged schools to comply voluntarily rather than face sanctions later.
He added that enforcement measures are already active, noting that thousands of signed letters have been dispatched to schools, alongside personal visits to institutions within and outside Lokoja, as well as radio announcements reinforcing the directive.
He warned that no school could claim ignorance of the policy, and that any school found flouting it would be shut down as a deterrent to others.
On school security, the commissioner said government has put measures in place to protect students from being k!dn@pped or att@cked, with efforts ongoing to prevent children from being taken into the bush.
The meeting also addressed preparations for the 2025/2026 Annual School Census, which the ministry said would generate accurate data to guide education planning for the new academic year.
The state government had first imposed the ban on excessive graduation and sign-out ceremonies across pre-primary, primary, secondary, and tertiary institutions in September 2025.