FG Restates Commitment to Students’ Safety, Lauds QC’s Development Strides

Uchechukwu Nnaike

The federal government says it is making concerted efforts to secure students’ lives and teaching and non-teaching staff in schools across the country.

The Federal Ministry of Education’s permanent secretary Sonny Echono said this during the inauguration of an all JS1 students’ hostel at Queen’s College, Lagos.

He expressed worry over the incessant attacks on schools and the subsequent kidnapping of students and staff by suspected bandits, saying that the situation affected the government’s quest for mass education.

“We will also put structures in place, especially for effective communication for early warning on a rapid response team, in every location, and comprising all the relevant security operatives,” Echono said.

He added that the federal government would partner local communities. Echono added that the government had sensitised schools to relate with vigilantes, police, Civil Defence, and the military.

The permanent secretary added that an assessment of schools, including the 110 unity colleges across the country, had been conducted. They were classified into various categories, ranging from the very high risk to the medium and relatively safe.

According to Echono, specific recommendations were made for the high-risk areas, including the military establishment and combined patrol team, as well as other task forces. He said specific recommendations were also made for medium risk areas.
Highlighting the federal government’s efforts to promote mass literacy, he said the government has redoubled efforts to ensure that out of school children are reabsorbed

“We are rejigging the architecture of our institutions to make them more responsive, more efficient and effective in delivering their mandate, just like we are doing with curriculum across board.

“The world is changing and we are in the era of IT, and given the mode of delivery, mode of teaching, teachers are fast becoming facilitators, no more all knowing.”
While inaugurating the project, Echono stated that Queen’s College has remained focused and has shown resilience over the years. He noted that the school had pushed the boundaries of academic excellence, especially in girl-child education in the country.

“I feel happy that what is going on here is not just to acquire knowledge and skills, but also moulding character, that as Africans, as Nigerians, our children are very respectful, appreciative and resilient,” he stated. “So, on behalf of the minister, I want to commend the principal of this college, Dr Tokunbo Yakubu-Oyinloye, for her leadership qualities and a job well done, the staff, the PTA for giving us their children and support, and most especially, our dear students, for keeping the flag flying very high.”

In her remarks, Yakubu-Oyinloye expressed delight in the completion of the project during her tenure as principal. She said the three-storey building, with an overhead tank and a laundry room, would accommodate not less than 550 JS1 students.
“One of the reasons for having just the JS1 students in this hostel is to ensure that they bond and to ensure that they are protected from any form of bullying,” the principal noted.