The United Evangelical Church, Igbo Field  has kicked against the proposed forceful recovery of  its school, Wilcox Memorial School, Aba by the Abia State Government and  vowed to resist the move which it described as unconstitutional.



Dailyledger.ng.com reports that Abia State government recently announced moves towards recovery of over 200 schools it hitherto returned to their previous owners including churches, individuals and groups. Recovery letters had reportedly been sent to owners of affected  schools giving them a seven-day transition period to allow the current authorities to remove their personal belongings and hand over all school property, records, and keys to the government-appointed managers of  affected schools. The government accused the churches, individuals and groups not only of mismanaging the schools but also of selling their lands, undertaking non-educational services/purposes and recruiting non-qualified teachers and staff



However, the United Evangelical Church, Igbo Field reacting to the letter urged the Abia government to desist from its pronouncements on their School describing same as demarketing.


In a letter addressed to the Chief of Staff, Government House, Umuahia, Abia State, the Church affirmed that it is the bonafide owner of Wilcox Memorial School, Aba  School which is managed on its behalf by  Crystalkleen Integrated Agency Limited.


The Church further affirmed that since the Abia State Government handed back the School to it in 2011,  over N500,000,000.00 (five hundred million Naira) has been invested in transforming the School  to  one of the best private schools in Aba. 


The letter signed by Rev. O. P. Jonah, the Chairman of  United Evangelical Church, Igbo Field maintained "...that the Abia State Government does not have the legal right to take over the management of the School, (Wilcox Memorial School) as the  decisions were made ultra vires the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria"


Going forward, the Church expressed shock that the Abia State Government took the extreme decision of taking back the School without giving the owners of the school, that is, United Evangelical Church, any chance of fair hearing and affirmed it would resist such proposal by government 


According to the Church, Wilcox Memorial School was formally returned to the Church (United Evangelical Church) by  the Government of Abia State through the Ministry of Education in a letter dated August 29, 2012 with Ref. No. MOE/S.293/1/290 and titled "Handover Of Schools To Original Owners' with the handover ceremony executed  on Friday September 14, 2012 and a Provisional Certificate of Return issued to the  Church 


It further stated that the process towards the return of the School to the Church began in 2011 when the administration of former Governor T. A. Orji returned the School to the Church vide an instrument from the Office of the Secretary To Abia State Government dated June 13, 2011 with reference SSG/ABS/S.239/Vol.1/9 and titled 'Hand Over Of Some Schools To Their Original Owners'. 


The Church  explained that Wilcox Memorial School was established by the United Evangelical Church (forner Qua Iboe Church) in 1962 and named after the Church's foremost Missionary Evangelist in Igbo Field, Rev. A. V. Wilcox.


It argued that the Military Government of East Central State unlawfully and forcefully took over the School without paying any compensation to the Church immediately after the Nigeria-Biafra Civil War in 1970 and  changed the name of the School to Comprehensive Secondary School, Ogbor Hill, Aba.