You can’t take our school system back to stone age – Afenifere

 

…Calls for Ministers sack

 

BY NICHOLAS ABE

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The pan-Yoruba socio-cultural organisation, Afenifere, has condemned the decision of the Federal Government that schools should remain closed in the country until further notice.

The group subsequently called on President Muhammadu Buhari to sack the ministers in charge of education for planning to ground education for a year.

The Secretary General of the association, Bashorun Sehinde Arogbofa, said the Federal Government should have allowed pupils to resume and find means of protecting them against coronavirus disease.

He said, “Adamu Adamu should be sacked, he cannot bring our school system back to the stone age. They had about six months to plan for these children what did the Federal Government do?

“It means the two of them (Adamu and the Minister of State for Education) don’t know what they are doing, so they should go. I think the two ministers in the ministry should go. Why would one say the pupils should resume to take their paper in August and the other minister would come and reverse the order?”

In the same vein, the group’s National Publicity Secretary, Yinka Odumakin, advised the federal government to urgently call a meeting of West African countries, and the regional examination body, the West African Examination Council (WAEC), over the impasse on 2020 West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE).

Odumakin said instead of denying the students a complete session, the examination can be managed in a way that the health of the students would not be compromised.

Afenifere’s response came against the backdrop of directive and counter directive by the Presidential Task Force on COVID-19 and Minister of State Education, on one hand, and Minister of Education, Adamu Adamu, on another hand.

The Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Boss Mustapha, who also chairs the PTF on COVID-19, had on June 29 during a briefing of the PTF, announced the reopening of schools for Primary 6, JSS 3 and SSS 3 students to enable them prepare for their examinations.

The Minister of State for Education, Chukwuemeka Nwajiuba, followed up with a report that the 2020 WASSCE would hold from August 4 to September 5.

However, Adamu on Wednesday, July 8, issued a counter directive, saying schools would no longer reopen as situation was not yet safe and that the WASSCE could not hold for now.

He said this was not the right time to open schools, adding that the government would not mind forfeiting the WASSCE in order to save the lives of students.

READ: Govt extends lockdown by 28 days; flights, interstate movement resume, schools also

Adamu said the West African Examinations Council could not determine the resumption date of schools for Nigeria and that final year students preparing for the Senior Secondary Certificate Examinations would not be allowed to return to school contrary to earlier announcement.

He said: “I don’t know whether you journalists are misquoting the Minister of State for Education or maybe quoting what WAEC said and made it into a story.

“Schools under the supervision of the Federal Ministry of Education will not be opened on August 4 or anytime soon.

“Our schools will only open when we believe it’s safe for our children and that is when the situation is right, not when the incidence of the infection (coronavirus) is going up in the nation.

“I just want to make it clear.

“We’ll not open soon for examination or for any reason, unless it is safe for our children, even WAEC. WAEC will not determine for us what we do. Schools will remain closed.”

But Afenifere was furious that the counter directive by the education minister was “yet another reason to know that we are burdened with a disintegrated government in Nigeria.”

Afenifere said since August 3 is still a bit far, “Nigeria should call a meeting of the West African countries involved and WAEC to manage the examinations in the interest of the students without compromising their health.

“This is how the government should run to show it cares for the public. The way our officials conduct themselves is becoming just too shameful,” Odumakin said in his statement.