Lagos Quality Assurance Office Charges Schools on Child Protection Policy

Funmi Ogundare

The Coordinating Director, Office of Education Quality Assurance (OEQA) Zones 18 to 19 District six, Lagos, Mr. Ekundayo Adekunle has appealed to all schools to domesticate the child protection policy saying that the move will guide against bullying which resulted in the death of a student of Dowen College.

Adekunle who made this appeal, recently, at its end of the year get-together/ sent forth and award ceremony, said each time his team go on quality assurance visit, that is the first thing they always seek to know whether the schools are adhering to the policy.

“We want to see the domestication of this policy and we interview learners discreetly to find out if this policy are being adhered to. But you know in any system, there may be one of two people that may want to circumvent the rules and regulations. However, the system has a way of bringing them out, like the issue of Dowen College.”

For schools that circumvent the rules and regulations of the state, he said his office has taken proactive step to ensure a toll free alert system by which they can always get information about private schools not adhering to rules and regulations especially guilding the establishment of schools.

He recalled that he recently got a call from the alert system informing him about how an unapproved school is running within a residential area in Mushin which is currently undergoing construction.
According to him, ” Somebody called to inform me about some things going on around some private schools in Mushin axis. The school is not approved and it’s located in a residential area in Mushin on a three storey building where construction work is currently ongoing.

” Everybody was evacuated from the building, but the students were still there receiving lecture. That is unacceptable to Lagos State.

The governor is particular about the safety of the children. Thank God we have a proactive Director General who is piloting the affairs of OEQA perfectly well.”

Adekunle noted that such issue will be escalated to the DG, adding that it his office would thereafter do its investigation. “The case will be escalated to the DG, but we will go and do our investigation. The DG will send the monitoring and evaluation team to do the needful.”

Asked on his office outlook for 2022, the director said, ” we are looking to getting more schools to be quality assured especially within our area of jurisdiction including Ikeja, Mushin and Oshodi and make our presence felt in virtually all the schools. “We want to see that students are being taught effectively, teaching and learning activities go on as and when due according to the curriculum and scheme of work.”

Emphasising on the get-together, he said the essence of it is to appreciate his administrative staff and evaluators for their efforts in the outgoing year, and encourage them to do more.

In her remarks, the Zonal Director, Zone 20, Oshodi/Isolo, Mrs. Maria Ayodele Olaogun acknowledged the dedication of staff throughout the year.
The programme witnessed the presentation of awards and gifts to evaluators and staff.