As the Lagos State Government prepares to re-open public schools’ shutdown in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, parents and staff of the Lagos State-owned Kusoru Nursery and Primary School in Ilasamaja have lamented the school’s unpreparedness for resumption.
The long-abandoned school environment now taken over by grass and weeds has become a haven for snakes and a hide-out for hoodlums who took advantage of the lock-down and broken fences to claim the school as their habitation.
Appealing for government intervention, the Chairman of the school’s Parent Teachers’ Association, Mrs. Rose Umokoro told Community Bell that the school was in a state of disrepair and needs serious government intervention.
“We really need help in this school. The grasses are overgrown and there are snakes hiding underneath them. There are no washing basins or sanitizers in place for the pupils and teachers when they eventually resume, and some parents do not have the money to send their children back to school. But more importantly, the school needs to be fumigated, we are appealing to government and public-spirited individuals to come to our aid”.
According to a teacher in the school who pleaded anonymity, the school is not prepared for resumption as “the fence of the school, classroom doors and roofs were vandalized by hoodlums who took over the premises and converted it to their temporary home. The school fence, doors, and roofs need to be fixed to ensure security for the children but nothing has been done about it yet”.
The Lagos State Government recently announced the resumption of public schools for September 14, 2020, as it opened senior secondary schools for graduating senior secondary students to write their West African School Certificate Exams.
