Authority of the Nigerian Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) says it has put adequate measures to ensure the safety of every student in the territory as the 2021/2022 academic session commences.
The Chairman of the FCT Secondary Education Board (SEB), Alhaji Musa Yahaya, gave the assurance when he led a team of officials from Education Secretariat and UBEB to monitor school resumption in the territory on Monday in Abuja.
Voice of Nigeria reports that some of the schools visited were; Government Secondary School Gwagwalada, Kingdom Heritage Model School, Gado Nasko Science Primary School; and Junior Secondary School, Phase 3, all in Gwagwalada Area Council.
Yahaya insisted that the FCT was safe, and the authorities are not resting on their oars in ensuring that every school and child was secured in the schools.
According to him, ” On improving the security of schools, for us in the FCT we keep whatever measures that we have put in place dearly in our hearts.
” It is something that has to do with the security of the lives of our future leaders, we don’t come out boldly to tell people this is what we are doing.
” A lot of measures have been put in place, and we have to assure parents that the authorities have done very well in keeping the students safe in our respective schools,” he said.
Yahaya said the objective of monitoring the school resumption was to access the level of students turnout and ensure compliance with the COVID-19 preventives measures.
The chairman said that adequate orientation had been given to the students and teachers on the nitty-gritty of the COVID-19 protocol.
He said, “It is a normal tradition that when schools resume, we make it out to assess the level of resumption particularly this period when we have the Third Wave of COVID-19 pandemic.
” So it will enable us to see the rate of compliance with the COVID-19 protocol, and look at the percentage of resumption as well as how ready the schools are, with regards to neatness, facilities and staff level of compliance to resumption.
” We have gone through this; the first, second and now the third wave of COVID-19 pandemic, so I the protocol still remain the way they are, and the compliance rate is what actually needs to heightened-up, to ensure that we are not found wanting for running foul of the protocols.”
Also, the Principal Junior Secondary School Phase III Gwagwalada, Hadiza Egigogo, said security personnel have been deployed at the school gate to screen people coming in and out of the school.
” The insecurity issue is on the ground, but with God, everything is taking shape. The security personnel at the school gate ensure that the established protocols are followed by those trying to gain access to the school.
” We have about 70 percent of our students in school today, and the first activity we often conduct is resumption test, to make them participate, in order to encourage them to come to school,” she said.
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