The Nigerian Government has cleared the air on the reported
move to reopen schools amid the continuous spread of coronavirus pandemic.
Emeka Nwajiuba, Minister of State for Education, on
Wednesday said that the Federal Government was making plans for students in
exit classes to write their respective final exams contrary to reports that
it’s reopening schools.
The Minister pointed out that despite the closing of schools
because of the coronavirus pandemic, exams are critical for the academic
progress of students.
“We presented to the PTF and by extension, the Federal
Government, the plans by examination bodies to hold their exams. The exams are
critical for how children progress,” He said on Channels TV’s Politics Today.
“We examined it and we felt that it is important to allow
those examinations to take place but ahead of them taking place, it is
important that those children who have not had the opportunity to revise their
syllabus, should have an opportunity to go through that and have a revision
class before the exams.”
He noted that most people who can afford the revisions from
their homes are already saying they will not be returning to school but go to
the exams from home.
“But we understand the limitations of the average Nigerian
because not everybody can afford laptops and devices and so if there are people
who do have this access and feel confident that their children are ready for
the exams, well, we are not compelling anybody to go to any school.
“What we have done is make the facilities in our schools
available,” he said.
“You all know that education is on the concurrent
legislative list and we’ve asked that state government’s that own these
schools, to provide places to wash hands, check the temperature of the children
constantly, have sanitisers in place. Private schools should be able to provide
that.
Nwajiuba said this is not a compulsion, adding that the
government was just making facilities available for those who want to write the
exams.
Earlier last month, Nwajiuba, had said schools may reopen in
Nigeria, when the ban on interstate travel has been lifted.
The Federal Government decided to shut down Schools
nationwide in March, to curtail the outbreak of coronavirus in the country.
The Minister also insisted that the government was not
willing to take chances with the health of children.
The Federal Government on Monday lifted the ban on
interstate movement.
Boss Mustapha, Secretary to the Government of the
Federation, SGF, made the announcement during the daily media chat of the
Presidential Task Force on COVID-19 in Abuja.
Mustapha said the directive would take effect from July 1.
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