Gory State of Public Own Schools in Ebonyi

Silent, they say is golden but an Igbo adage says that an elders do not stay in a house and a goat dies in tithers, suffice to say that, keeping mute with the current state of Public schools in Ebonyi,a state that had produced the like of first class leader of old Eastern region Nnanyi,Akanu Ibiam, Dr.Onyebuchi Chukwu, the former minister for Health that put end to Lassa fever outbreak in Nigeria, Dr.Sam Ominyi Egwu,former Minister for Education (a.k.a Igurube) and other super intelligent cadre in all spheres of life cannot be watch as it go derailed in this 21st century when best brain carries it all which if do will be likened to the case of NWICO debate which third world countries accused Westerners of under reporting them,whereas, all that they do when established own medium in effort to change what makes news become not far from what western media present them as among rape, cannibalism,cultism, bombing, robbery, looting of public fund,bad leadership, illiteracy among other irritating attitude.

However, our reporter who visited public schools in Ebonyi State discovered that almost all the government own schools have been left on life support leaving them for children of the poor whereas, the rich and average family opt for private schools ,our correspondence,Anyaele writes from Abakaliki.

On the recent concluded West Africa examination council (WAEC), in Ebonyi State, team of journalists who monitored the exam saw  private schools to have collapsed government own schools in the State.

    Our observation shows that almost all the government owned schools visited has been damaged and abandoned by the state government, the community secondary school Nkalagu , community secondary School oshiagu, community secondary School okpoto  community secondary School Amoffia Ngbo, community secondary School Ezillo,  community Secondary school Igbeagu,girls secondary School Ezillo among others has been affected by wind .

     During our interaction, the principal community secondary School Nkalagu Mrs. Ikeburu  Ogechukwu told newsmen that the candidate who are seating for the WAEC examination has not been comfortable do to the damages of classroom and examination hall which was so severe that learning activities was highly interrupted as the students have fewer classroom.

Ogechukwu noted that the candidate who are writing WAEC examination will no longer meet up with the standard examination sitting arrangement as there was no more space for conducive exmaination standard.

   She added that the unfortunate disaster took place recently at the school compound, during a heavy down pour that was accompanied with thunder storm but unfortunately government has not paid attention to this ugly incident, she maintained.

Also speaking, the principal Girls secondary School Ezillo who have 47 candidates registered for WAEC examination lamented that the crisis between the Ezza and Ezillo has affected educational sector in Ezillo because many students especially neighboring communities who has been attending the school has been relocated to other schools do to there was no classroom block to accommodate much students .

The pricipal added that Ezillo Girls high school ,css Ezillo and Government technical college Ezillo has relocated to community secondary School Ezillo where much accommodation was not much provided for the three schools occupied in one place .
She commended government led by Engr. David Nweze Umahi and Appeal to them if renovation, re-roofing and relocation of the school to there original site will be made to enable them boom up high standard of education in the area. 

Also observed, the monitoring team who saw community secondary school Amasiri  WAEC candidate who were writing their WAEC examination under mango trees because examination hall has been dilapidated.

The principal why talking with the team of journalist on WAEC monitoring said she has alerted the PTA chairman on negative situation but obviously,  the matter was beyond the poor parent of these students because all the effort prove to build it by PTA parent prove  abortive. The principal who also maintained that the government has been briefed even the pictures has been taken to them but no positive development has been made regarding on  the request .

     On the course of the observation by the monitoring team , the original school hall has dilapidated and abandoned in the bush for a long time which makes academic standard of school to be shaking.
The principal community secondary school Ekwashi Ngbo on his side commended commissioner for education Rt Hon Sabins Nwakwegu, he noted that the said school does not have mathematics teacher, physics teacher, chemistry teacher to mention but a few. He equally called government and appeal to them to provide them with  enough teacher to make  teaching and learning effective .

Also visited the principal Ezza high school who maintained that if WAEC board and government will adopt this new policy established by registering students in SS1 to make them sit and prepare their internal examination, adding that if this policy can be fully adopted it will actually activate and revised educational scheme in Ebonyi State and Nigeria at large.

The principal lamented aggressively the way which students who started JSS1 in government schools leave for private schools to register for WAEC after teachers have taken time to groom them, saying that until such abnomalies are put to a stop that effort to curb examination malpractice would remain a story.

Furthermore, at community Secondary School Ette in Izzi LGA, the school was said to be surviving through the parents Teachers Association contribution whereby principal office was in bad shape, class rooms were said to be raised whenever parents made some contributions, whereas, school has no functional library, no public toilet with over five hundred students and staff office not different from ancient hut which was unable to accommodate five journalists who visited the school.

When our team visited Community Secondary school Enyanwigwe,we observed that some class room which it's roof, wind  blew Open two years ago was yet to gain government attention despite report said to have made to the concern ministry even at Community Secondary School Iziogo, the principal popularly known as Obj reliably told us that the school was a shadow of itself as it has no functional library and class rooms not conducive for learning, calling the state government to extend its good work to rural schools.

The school principal commended the state commissioner for Education, for his campaign against examination malpractice appealing that investing more into educational sector should be given a priority in the second term of governor Umahi administration.

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