Lagos threatens sanctions on schools reopening | EduCeleb
EduCeleb
15th June 2020
The Lagos State Government has said it would sanction schools which violate the lockdown in place affecting schools closure.
Through the Lagos State Office of Education Quality Assurance (OEQA), it condemned the act of inviting students to come to school by owners of private primary and secondary schools despite directive to the contrary by the government.
In a statement released from the Office of the Director General, OEQA Lagos State Private Primary and Secondary Schools were “strongly warned to desist from the act of reopening schools under whatever guise thereby exposing pupils to infections and dangers of Covid-19”.
It added that any school caught flouting this directive of the Federal and the Lagos State Government on school closure, under whatever reason, will be “heavily sanctioned”.
Recall that the Federal Government has since March ordered the closure of schools across the country to curtail exposure to and the spread of COVID-19 among students because of their vulnerability and inability to observe social distancing.
To ensure compliance, the Office of Education Quality Assurance Monitoring and Investigation team said it is embarking on compliance monitoring exercise across the state simultaneously to ensure schools adhere strictly to the directive of the Governor of Lagos State, Babajide Sanwo-Olu.
According to Mrs Abiola Seriki-Ayeni, central to the monitoring exercise is the safety of all children, teachers and the general public.
She stated that the state has witnessed total compliance rate except for some few schools who are doing all they could to beat government scrutiny without an iota of concern for the health and safety of their pupils.
She advised such schools to stop forcing students/pupils to school, an act that could jeopardize the future of these innocent children. She however warned that any school caught will face the wrath of the law.
The Director General assured the public of government’s continual sensitisation of the general public through radio jingles, public announcements and the social media on how to maintain proper hygiene, like washing of hands with soap and water, use of face mask and the use of hand sanitizer.
Mrs Seriki-Ayeni added that the general public will be notified when it is right and safe for students to return to school.
EduCeleb.com recalls that this is not the first time the government would issue such warning. The education ministry had earlier warned against using online teaching to replace the regular academic activities. In the Federal Capital Territory, Kaduna and Rivers State also, schools have been shut for violating guidelines banning the reopening of schools during the lockdown.