Parents seek closure for schools during polls

AHEAD of this month’s elections, strong indications have emerged that public and private schools across the country may be closed. The Guardian reports that he move may not be unconnected with fears being expressed by parents over the safety of their children, as apprehension over possible post-election violence heightens.

 For instance, a private school, British Nigerian Academy, Abuja, has sent a text message to parents of their pupils which reads: “Dear parents, in the light of the uncertainties surrounding the upcoming elections and the overall safety and security of our staff and students, parents are advised to pick up their children on Thursday February 12, 2015 from 8 am. Students are expected to return to school on Saturday February 21, between 12 noon and 6 pm. Parents are strongly advised that this is not a holiday and all homework and assignments must be duly completed and ready for submission upon resumption.”

 Meanwhile, some parents are also demanding that the government should close down all schools including tertiary institutions. The argument is not only to safeguard the children during the election but also enable youths who might have registered in their various zones to exercise their civic responsibilities.  But the police have allayed fears over possible violence during and after the election, urging Nigerians not to panic as the force was doing everything necessary to forestall any crisis.

 A parent, Patience Eze, said: “For nursery and private schools, I think they should be closed so that they will be secured at home, but for the higher institutions they are old enough to take care of themselves, if schools should provide adequate security. But on the other hand, if students did not register close to their various campuses, it then means they will not be able to vote if they are in school since there will not be any movement.

  “We wouldn’t want anybody not to have the privilege or to be denied the right to perform his or her civic responsibility. In order not to have that, I think government should probably close all the schools and declare public holiday so that everybody would have that liberty to either vote or not.”

  Speaking in an interview with The Guardian in Abuja, a senior staff in the office of the Director, Basic Education, Federal Ministry of Education, who sought anonymity, disclosed that before Friday, the ministry would issue a statement concerning the closure of all the unity schools in the country.

  She said that the resolution was reached at the end of a stakeholders meeting conveyed on Tuesday to look into concerns raised by parents concerning the safety of their children during the elections.

  Her words: “There is a lot of apprehension about post election violence, the unity schools principals said parents have been agitating to take their children before the election, so the ministry now took a decision, the directors were asked to look at it and then brief the Permanent Secretary. When he approves and shows to the Minister of State, then we will now contact the principals and then give them the authentic date that the students will go on vacation. All the students will go on vacation for about a week or two.

  According to her, the fate of the students who were transferred from the unity schools in high-risk arrears of the northeast was also deliberated upon.  “Through the Safe School Initiative Programme that was initiated by Gordon Brown, we distributed the students with the consent of their parents, to the schools in the Northern region. What we discussed recently was that some have been posted to Sokoto, in the face of short holidays, how do we do, do we return them back? Those were the things we debated yesterday.”

  Reacting to the memos sent to parents by some private schools to take their wards over the uncertainties surrounding the general election, the Director, Basic and Secondary Education, Federal Ministry of Education, Chike Uwaeuoke told The Guardian: “We can’t speak for private schools, we can’t speak for public schools that are state owned, we can only speak for our system, for now we haven’t done anything on it. Maybe the affected school is doing what it should do, I am not defending them, but I think what they have done is to utilise this opportunity to give their students midterm break. But, naturally, parents are worried. I have had one or two parents who have called me about it. 

  “The Federal Government Unity schools usually give one-week mid-term break, I suspect that the schools may have structured their mid-term break just like we may have to. This term, we didn’t add mid term break in our calendar because we lost four weeks due to the Ebola outbreak and the Senior Staff Association strike.”

  When The Guardian contacted the Chairperson of Association of Private Educators in Nigeria (APEN), Femi Ogunsanya, she said that the association was yet to decide on what to do during the said period.

  She added: “I can’t comment on that for now, we have not decided what to do until we meet and I cannot preempt what the outcome is likely to be since I’m not a sole decider.”

  But, the President, National Association of Proprietors of Private Schools, (NAPPS), Dr. Rabiu Kurfi, said that the association would not shutdown schools during the period except if there is directive to that effect from the Federal Ministry of Education.

  “We are operating in Nigeria, we are being regularised, and we are being supervised by various ministries of education, at three level; local, state and federal. We are bound to comply with what the various agencies that regulate our conduct instruct. If the federal government decides to close schools during the elections, we will not be left unaware.  “All what we need do is to wait for the decision the state and the local government will take on the fate of schools during the polls. We await the federal government directives on whether the schools will close during that time or not.”

  He however advised members of the association to continue with school activities until the federal government issues directive in that regard.  “If the country can manage the security situation of the country during the period, we will continue with our calendar as earlier directed,” he added.

  Meanwhile, the Proprietor of Mandate Private Schools, Akesan, Lagos, Rev. Sunday Attah, who expressed hope that the February polls would be free and fair, has advised that schools be temporarily closed for safety, especially of the vulnerable group. “What we did last year was to plan our mid-term to coincide with the election and then resume after. I don’t want to believe there is going to be any serious issue during the period. God’s willing the election will be free and fair.

  “For those who did not plan their activities as they ought to, I would advise them to let the students go home for safety purposes and government should declare public holiday so that people can go home and vote in their various local governments or zones and parents too will have peace of the mind.”

  Another parent, Dalamu Taofeek, who is also a Ph.D student in the Department of English, University of Lagos, said that government should order schools’ closure in the interest of the nation.

  “It is better schools close, considering the issue of security at this period, anything can happen and these children are not matured, they cannot take care of themselves, even those in boarding schools should go for a short holiday and then return after the election. For students in the universities, they are old enough to take care of themselves.”

  The Assistant Inspector General (AIG) of Police in-charge Zone 4, in Kano State, Adenrele Shinaba, however, advised: “Nigerians, especially, southerners resident in the north, not to leave their station in fear or panic over the forthcoming general elections.”

  Shinaba, who is the immediate past Commissioner of Police in Kano, said that though the experience of the 2011 post election violence may result in apprehension, security is now better off to handle such situations.
“There are on-going aggressive sensitization programmes by the police and other stakeholders to ensure that both parents and children are well informed on the inherent dangers of getting involved in violence during and after the election,” stressed Shinaba.   He explained that the police were working hand-to-hand with traditional rulers, community leaders, opinion leaders as well as leaders of all the religious groups to ensure that the message of peace and tolerance were duly passed on to citizens.
Shinaba advised people not to leave Kano out of panic, giving the example that the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP and All Progressives Congress (APC) political rallies were held peacefully despite the initial fear of violence.  “Before these rallies, people were nursing fears, and were afraid that there will be problem, but it went well.  So, the February election will come and go. There is no need for people to start relocating from one state to the other,” Shinaba added. 

  He stated that the police, other law enforcement agencies, INEC and all other stakeholders are putting their act together for the country to have a credible election it deserves.  “As such, by the time we have a credible election, and the results are out, people will realise that there is no need for a post-election violence,” he added.