…State of public primary and secondary schools in AKS is disturbing
… Chides Commissioner for punishing school administrators and teachers instead of rescuing
Akakan Umoh
A Nigerian journalist, Ibanga Isine, has raised serious concerns over the ‘’deplorable’’ state of many public primary and secondary schools in Akwa Ibom State.
In a letter entitled: Holy Week Reflections on Akwa Ibom State and dated 6 April, Isine, the Chief Executive Officer/Editor of GuardPost Newspaper, alerted Governor Umo Eno ‘‘Sir, the state of many public primary and secondary schools in Akwa Ibom is very disturbing.
‘‘What is more upsetting is that schools in Uyo, the capital, are now nearly as decrepit as those in rural areas. For a state as rich as ours, this is unacceptable.’’
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He castigated the Commissioner of Education for punishing school administrators and teachers who allow journalists to report these problems, rather than taking steps to fix the schools.
According to him, some secondary schools in Uyo metropolis now have more vice principals than classroom teachers. ‘‘In some cases, as many as 20 vice principals are posted to a school, many of them wives of politicians and top civil servants. Meanwhile, classrooms no longer have enough teachers to teach the students.’’
The journalists cited Government Primary School, Afaha Offot, which is located near the Idongesit Nkanga Secretariat and where the Ministry of Education and other government offices are, saying ‘‘The school is in a terrible state.
‘‘There are no ceilings, no doors, no windows. Offot Central Primary School near the Federal Secretariat and St. Francis Primary School on Abak Road, close to Pepsi Junction, are not better. Community Comprehensive Secondary School, Four Towns, also came into the spotlight recently, with images of students writing exams on bare floors in dilapidated classrooms.
‘‘Ideally, a secondary school in the metropolis should have between 90 and 100 teachers because of the large number of students. But what we see instead is a system in which vice principals lobby to be posted to city schools, causing a shortage of teaching staff.
‘‘As senior officers, most of them are given administrative duties, and only a few teach occasionally. This situation is not good for the education system and is unfair to the students. You must take urgent action to correct this imbalance and restore proper teaching and learning in our schools,’’ he added.
Straightnews had reported about the renovation and subsequent inauguration of a classroom block of Government Technical College, Ewet in Uyo Local Government Area by Rev. Ntia I. Ntia, Senior Pastor of Full Life Christian Centre, Uyo.
