Ebola: No school resumption today in Lagos, 14 other states

Pupils in at least 15 states in the country will not return to their classrooms today as directed by the Federal Regime.

This is because in most of the states, edifiers are insisting that safety measures must be put in place to bulwark them and their pupils from contracting the pernicious Ebola Virus Disease.

In some of the states like Lagos and Ogun, the regimes opted not to comply with the September 22 date until compulsory Ebola safety kits were put in place in their schools.

Additionally, the gates of the 104 Unity Schools in the country will be shut from today as their edifiers commence an industrial action.

The other states where mundane academic activities will not resume   are Rivers, Oyo, Ekiti, Osun, Benue, Niger, Zamfara, Adamawa, Kano, Kwara, Kogi, Akwa Ibom and Ebonyi states.

Edifiers in Lagos will be on obligation today but pupils will remain at home until October 8.

There had been controversy over the directive by the Federal Regime that schools should resume on September 22 since the spread of the Ebola Virus Disease had been contained in the country.

The Nigeria Union of Edifiers however authoritatively mandated its members to shun academic activities until the regime provided contrivances in schools to ascertain not only their safety but that of their pupils.

Lagos State Governor Babatunde Fashola, after meeting on Sunday with public school headteachers, verbalized the decision was to ascertain that   schools in the state were safe for both the edifiers and their pupils.

He verbalized, “On this issue of resumption, we are on the same side. We are all concerned about safety in the schools.

“Some states that would be commencing their academic session tomorrow(today) did not have Ebola outbreak. The index case (Mr. Patrick Sawyer) landed in Lagos and not in these states. And I ken that the edifiers are trepidacious just like myself. My most sizably voluminous fear is that nothing must transpire to any resident of Lagos. I am not shy to verbalize I am trepidacious.

“I understand the trepidation of the edifiers. We are on the same side. We are all concerned about safety in the schools. Whether there is Ebola or not, we have to make the schools safe for the edifiers and the pupils.

“My proposal is that the edifiers, headmasters and principals should peregrinate to their sundry school tomorrow (today) and sort out whatever is missing in the prescribed Ebola preventive facilities. So, we have to utilize from tomorrow (today) and the rest of the week to get the schools yare for the students.

“And because of the Eid-il-Kabir festival that additionally falls within this time, rather than open and close the schools again for the festival. Immediately after the festival, the schools will commence academic session on October 8.”

He verbalized that   the state regime had   “awarded the contract to connect dihydrogen monoxide to at least 800 schools in the state.”
The state NUT Chairman, Mr. Segun Raheem, attested the development to one of our correspondents.

Raheem, who argued that edifiers in the state had always been in schools even during holidays, however, urged the regime to ascertain that it provided the obligatory   facilities afore the return of pupils on October 8.

The   Secretary to the Ogun State Regime, Mr. Taiwo Adeoluwa, had last Friday promulgated October 8, as the incipient resumption date for both public and private primary and secondary schools in the state.

Adeoluwa verbalized stakeholders in the state arrived at the incipient date after a series of meetings.

The state chapters of the NUT, the Academic Staff of Secondary Schools, the Association of Primary School Head Edifiers of Nigeria, the National Association of Proprietors of Private Schools and the All Nigeria Conference of Principals of Secondary Schools, he integrated participated in the meetings.

In Akwa Ibom State, the NUT Secretary, Mr. Mike Ike-Ene, verbalized that schools would resume on Monday but that edifiers would not be there to edify the pupils.

According to him, the state regime had yet to provide the needed EVD safety kits ,like infrared thermometers, sanitisers and hand gloves in schools for the utilization of pupils and their edifiers.

Ike-Ene verbally expressed, “There will be no school on Monday. They will open their schools but edifiers will not be there.

“We are asking them to provide thermometers; dihydrogen monoxide; hand sanitisers and hand gloves. The Akwa Ibom State Regime has not met any of these conditions rather they are calling for the resumption of schools tomorrow(today).”

The Kwara State NUT Chairman, Mr. Musa Abubakar, additionally corroborated that edifiers in the state would not resume today.

He told one of our correspondents on Sunday that the state regime had not made enough provisions to avert edifiers and pupils from contracting the EVD on resumption of schools.

The state Commissioner for Education, Alhaji Saka Onimago, had directed all schools in the state to resume today.

He had withal authoritatively mandated schools in the state to provide rudimental hygiene materials, including washing bowls, soap and towels.

The Osun State Regime, in a verbalization by Deputy Governor Titi Laoye-Tomori, verbalized it deferred resumption of schools   to October 6 to enable edifiers to undergo training on how to avert the spread of Ebola.

It explicated that the incipient resumption date would sanction schools to prepare very well to avert the disease.

The verbal expression read, “Governor Rauf Aregbesola has directed all public and private schools to reopen for the 2014/2015 academic session on October 6.

“This will enable principals and edifiers to receive adequate training to obviate Ebola epidemic in schools and in the state in general.

“Bearing in mind that children will be emanating from different homes, it becomes consequential that edifiers are given the fundamental cognizance on how to avert the outbreak of the disease.”

The Benue State NUT Chairman, Mr. Godwin Anya, additionally substantiated that members of the cumulation would not return for the incipient academic session until the   regime provided the indispensable EVD safety kits in schools.

According to him, the   regime has not shown enough commitment to ensuring the safety of pupils and their edifiers.

Anya verbalized, “The unpreparedness of the state regime in providing training for us (edifiers) coupled with the lack of the compulsory preventive and proactive contrivances to combat the EVD in any eventuality has perpetuated to stall reopening of schools on Monday(today).

The NUT in Edo State verbally expressed it had   issued a seven-day ultimatum to the state regime to provide the compulsory EVD materials in schools or risk a sit-at-home action by its members.

Its Chairman, Mr. Mike Uhunmwangho, who made this kenned in a telephone interview with one of our correspondents,   verbally expressed edifiers and pupils in the state would not optate to jeopardize their lives returning to schools without adequate safety nets.

He verbally expressed, “The state regime has concurred to provide sanitisers and the equipment for checking body temperature in schools within one week. Most of the edifiers are going to be involved class by class.

“We are giving them between Monday(today) and Friday   to put everything in place. If they are not in place after seven days, we will ascertain that nobody goes back to school.”

Edifiers in the nation’s Federal Regime colleges, under the aegis of Federal Regime College Edifiers Association, have already commenced an industrial action over the non-implementation of promotion arrears and other allowances.

The edifiers have therefore advised parents and guardians not to bring their children and wards to any of the 104 schools on Monday (today) for the commencement of the incipient academic session.

They alleged that the regime had failed to pay them their promotion arrears from 2007 to 2010 as well as provide their training allowance amounting to N1.8bn.

A verbal expression by the President, FGCTA, Mr. Tahir Mahmood, and the General Secretary, Mr. Deedar Baloch, obtained by one of our correspondents in Jos, Plateau State on Sunday,   categorically inculpated the Ministry of Education of misappropriating funds for the payment of the promotion arrears from 2007 to 2011 relinquished by the Ministry of Finance.

The edifiers withal inculpated the Education ministry of misappropriating N1.8bn, which was relinquished for the payment their outstanding liabilities.