Resumption extension: School owners storm Fashola’s office

School owners under the aegis of National Association of Proprietors of Private Schools on Tuesday stormed the office of the Lagos State Governor, Mr. Babatunde Fashola, to protest the extension of 2010/2011 second-term resumption date by the Federal Government.

This came just as the Ogun State Government ordered schools to resume immediately. The government only requested that school heads should provide two of its classrooms to officials of the Independent National Electoral Commission for the voter registration exercise.

The proprietors, who turned out in large numbers chanting solidarity songs, arrived the government house around 3 pm but were informed by the security that the governor was not in the office.

Brandishing various placards with inscriptions such as ‘only 265 public schools are needed for voters registration, why closing all,’ no intimidation of private schools, open, our schools, it cost money, education in Nigeria is injured already, say no to draconian, un-progressive, obnoxious and sadist politics, among others. The proprietors appealed to the governor to prevail on the Federal Government to reverse the situation.

NAPPS president, Mrs. Elizabeth Olomofe Kufeji, who addressed journalists, described the decision to close down schools as ill-conceived. She, therefore, appealed to the state governor to reverse the decision.

She said that it was necessary for the Lagos State government to intervene speedily in the situation, especially as private schools in neighbouring Ogun State, would be open during the exercise.

Kufeji explained that besides not carrying them along as major stakeholders while making the decision, the registration exercise could take place at the weekends adding that for the three weeks that schools would be shut they would still have to pay salaries and that parents would not take it likely with them.

She said that the standard of education had already fallen drastically in Nigeria with the nation’s university not ranking among the best in the world. She argue that the closure would do further damage to education in Nigeria and further extend the semester beyond their imagination.

“As educators, we are not going to seat back and let the future of our children be ruined. As far as we are concerned, the security system in Lagos state is well structured.

“This is not the first time in Nigeria that the private schools were on and public schools were shut down. They know how to adjust the academic calendar. The FG should not disturb the academic session because they are organising voter registration. The first 400 universities were shortlisted recently, no Nigerian university was listed, and all these were due to frequent distortion of our academic calendar.

“Other private schools in neighbouring states did not close down their schools. There is no good reason why schools in the country should be closed. This is not the first time we are organising voter registration in Nigeria. The FG did not inform private schools owners before announcing their decision,” she said.

One of the security officers in mufti, attached to the governor’s office, who did not disclose his identity, told the protesters that the governor was not around but that their request would be forwarded to him.