Edo: Outrage over viral video forces Obaseki to close ‘all dilapidated schools’

Edo State Governor, Godwin Obaseki has ordered the closure of all
primary and secondary schools with dilapidated structures.


This followed condemnation over a viral video which showed pupils of
Holy Aruosa Primary School in Benin City, sitting under the rain in a
flooded classroom, with torn roof.

Special Adviser to the Governor on Media, Crusoe Osagie, in a
statement said, "All such schools, with dilapidated structures have
been shutdown with immediate effect. Students and pupils in the
affected schools are hereby relocated to other schools that will be
announced soon".


He said Secretary to the State Government, Osarodion Ogie, visited
Holy Aruosa Primary School on Thursday, to announce the state
government's decision.

Continuing, the aide noted that "The state government has ordered an
investigation to ascertain why the initial relocation order of the
pupils with their teachers was not enforced."

"One of the allegations being investigated is the suspicion that some
teachers, who are refusing to be transferred out of the school,
selfishly kept those kids in the school under unsafe condition."


On the ongoing reform in the state's education sector, Osagie said
that "on assumption of office in November 2016, Governor Godwin
Obaseki ordered an inventory of facilities and the enumeration of
primary and secondary schools in the state.

"After the census, the schools were categorised into three: those in
grade A are in good condition; those in B need little intervention and
schools in grade C require total renovation.

"It is obvious that Holy Aruosa Primary School and Osula Primary
School, among others, fell in the third category and require urgent
attention. The worst of them like Holy Aruosa were shut down."

He maintained that, "As is the culture of this administration,
groundwork has already begun for this renovation process to commence,
as only few months ago bid rounds were held for the rehabilitation of
some of these schools.

"The renovation work is expected to cover 1,200 public schools in the
state, with the first batch of 230 schools captured in the pilot phase
of the exercise.

"We assure that work will soon commence at these schools within Benin
metropolis and other parts of the state, and call on communities to
protect the structures as soon as they're built."

"The state government will expedite action on the renovation work to
ensure that our pupils learn in conducive environment, even as we roll
out the Edo Basic Education Sector Transformation (Edo BEST) programme
to some of these schools in coming weeks" Osagie added.