Over 300 Pupils and teachers of the Local Education Agency (LEA), Kpakpatoshi under the Abuja Municipal Area Council (AMAC) has been in a sorry state due to insecurity, lack of infrastructure and worse of all, inability to answer the call of nature when the need arises.
A recent visit by LEADING REPORTERS to the school recently showed the dilapidated structures, lack of access to portable water and functional toilet an eyesore to portray a primary school of repute in the 21st century, particularly in the federal capital territory.
Meanwhile, leading reporters in an exclusive interview with the headmaster of the School, Mr. Matoh Bawa revealed that Ochacho Estate Idu built one uncompleted toilet for the school after taking over the land that houses an initial toilet built by the FCT Universal Basic Education Board in 2007 for the construction of houses.
Findings revealed that Ochacho construction has fenced the toilet built by the FCT to begin construction with the intention of demolishing it while yet to complete the one built to compensate the school.
Bawa explained that both teachers and pupils for the past years have resorted to going into the bush nearby to answer the call of nature which he described as unhealthy for them such that they can breath in fresh air again, he emphasized that this act has been exacerbated by residents of the community who has taken advantage of the situation to make the school a mess.
In his words, Mr Bawa said:
“My admin officer can’t come to work today because she has stomach trouble and there is no
toilet.
“She has to stay at home, if I’m pressed now, I have to
move somewhere else. If you go there, go and see. Open defecation everywhere.
You can’t breathe fresh air. We have little children. So it is terrible now.
“We are just managing the toilet
because we have female teachers here. We have to manage. But health-wise, the toilet
is not good for humanity.
“We are using detergent because the back there is open. So we are just managing it because
we don’t have any option.”
Mr. Bawa however appeal to Ochacho to complete the toilet built, ensure water is running and provide basic infrastructure for the school which will serve as their Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) for the community.
“They have the capacity to at least do something for this school. Because the village came before the
estate. And it has benefited a lot from this village. And it’s still benefiting. We have students,
people that are coming from the estate to this school.
“They are living in the estate and they are attending this primary school. Our teachers don’t have tables they are using people’s seats they have been vandalized by criminals. So they can do that for us they can supply us with furniture.
“We don’t have potable water, whenever children are thirsty. They have to go home and it’s not good for our educational system, the law says that we should not allow them to go home. We don’t have school premises.
“We need perimeter fence. That is one of the major needs. The school needs renovation.
You can see. The school needs toilets. For both teachers and people.
“Then we need additional classrooms. These are the major problems we have in the
school. In this problem, I have listed it they can pick one and do it for us”. he added.
Meanwhile, a representative of Ochacho who spoke with Leading Reporters claim that the toilet is under construction but does not know when the construction will be done.
His words: “It is under construction sir, I don’t know, I don’t know when it will be constructed sir”.